Takara and Tzu
by SilverWings211
Summary: Saki has created two human-animal hybrids underground. Now the two are on the run. Just what'll happen when they meet the ninja turtles? DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes**

(1) i DO NOT own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

(2) There are several OCs in this -this chapter and the next few are supposed to serve more as an introduction. Also, this is set along the 2003-onwards series.

(3) PLZ review!! I'm new to this whole thing!

* * *

Professor Robert Adkins had been trying to prove that human-animal hybrids could be created for years and his less than humane measures had ensured his fall from grace. Although he was now ridiculed and had lost his job as Genetic Engineering professor at one of the USA's leading universities, he had persisted with his difficult research. Using extensive computer simulations, as well as the use of a genetics lab under the sewers of the city of New York and generous funds, he had been searching for the right mix of genes needed to produce a human-avian hybrid.

His benefactor was not well known for his temper or patience, and the constant delays meant the Professor was down to his last warning, and he only had a few hours to get the balance right before the rich resourceful man he worked for phoned, demanding an update. If there were any more hold-ups in finding a new subject, it would be his head on the line.

Across from the computer terminal where the man worked was a large glass tank, filled with rocks and small hiding places. A light was rigged to give out a high temperature and create desert-like conditions. It looked like a tank for a snake, but the only occupant was Adkins first 'subject', a boy he had dubbed Tzu. He had been a prisoner for a couple of years, and Adkins was proud of him. Tzu was his first proof of what he had been trying to show his entire career –human hybrids could be mixed with amphibian and reptilian creatures. Tzu was currently under the shelter of a boulder, looking out of green eyes at his master without Adkins being able to see the hate in his eyes.

But his benefactor had set another test of his capabilities –if he could produce a human-avian creature, then Adkins could expect a high price for his creations and a limitless number of test subjects. Entering into this partnership had been his smartest move.

The computer bleeped, having finished running the last simulation. Adkins could hardly believe his eyes when he read the screen. There was what he had been searching for; before his eyes was the combination of human to avian genes needed to create a successful hybrid that was strong, fast and agile, able to fly just as a bird did. Now all he needed was a new human subject to test the theory out on. Still, there was nothing his new partner wouldn't be able to help him with.

Just then the phone rang, interrupting his celebrating mood. He eyed the phone; he knew that only one person had the number to this underground laboratory. He had cut it close. Lifting the receiver to his ear, he took the call.

"Have you made any progress?" said the voice of the scientist's benefactor. "I trust you know the punishment that you face if you have not fulfilled your end of our bargain?"

"I'm delighted to report that the first phase of the project is over, and since the simulations take up the most time, we are now onto the second and easier phase of the project. I have the perfect mix of DNA to create the ideal human-avian hybrid. All I need to do now is secure a subject and test the theory practically."

"I trust you are already looking for one, Adkins," the man said. "And be careful who you snatch. The last thing we need is a public scare like when you took the last one."

"I assure you, no one will notice that anyone has vanished, and if they do, they will not uproot the city."

"You'd better make sure of that," said the man before terminating the call.

Adkins looked at Tzu's tank. That boy had been so popular that his friends and family had caused a major fuss and whipped up a witch hunt for many weeks, slowing the rate of progress. This time would be different. He had been staking out a family with more than one child and he knew that, although they were tourists, they didn't have the money to stay for a suspended search once their flight was ready to go. And that plane was due to go in a couple of days.

He dispatched the assistants his benefactor had loaned to him, telling them which target to take and where it was likely they would find her. He had been careful to have her tailed, and he knew she always went the same route. It would be no problem for two highly trained ninja masters to grab an untrained and unsuspecting citizen girl.

On the surface, Arianna Jenkins turned down another alley of New York, following the same route she had jogged every single morning since arriving in New York. She had run it every day for a week, and knew every inch of her route. Now she was on her way back to the hotel, and she would be just in time for breakfast.

Arianna had always been sportive, the racer out of the three Jenkins siblings. Frank was the musical one, preparing to sit hid fourth grade at the piano and fifth grade at the violin, and Lucy was the academic one, always scoring the highest points in every test she took. All Arianna wanted to do was attend sports college and go on to teach at a school.

As she ran, the music pumping into her ears through the headphones allowed her to settle into her own rhythm. It also blocked out the noise of the traffic, and the sound of problems sneaking up behind her.

The first she knew of anything amiss was when someone grabbed her from behind, jerking her away from the end of the alley and into the shadows. She couldn't make out her attackers, and soon she couldn't move, cry out or see. She was tied hand and foot, with a gag tied firmly in place and a blindfold securely fastened over her eyes before someone jerked her over their shoulder.

But she did still have a sense of smell and soon a very unpleasant odour hit her nose. There was only one place that could stink like this, and that had to mean her assailants had taken her into New York's sewers. Her mind was racing with unanswerable questions. Who were these people? What did they want? Where were they going?

For an immeasurable amount of time she was carried like a sack of potatoes through the sewers of one of the largest sprawling cities in the world. Then she was set down but the blindfold was left on. She felt something cover her mouth and nose, forcing her to breathe in the paralysing drug that also knocked her unconscious. When she woke, she was no longer Arianna Jenkins.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note

(1) I DO NOT own Ninja Turtles

* * *

All I knew when I recovered was I not free. I had no recollection of how I had got here, but I was sure I had not volunteered for whatever it was that had happened to me. The last thing I could remember was someone snatching me from behind in an alley in the early morning.

Apart from that, my mind was a blank.

I raised my head slowly, groaning softly as a wave of dizziness hit me like a tsunami. I was lying on my front, in a room that boasted a right mix of machinery. The sight of some machines woke slight but vague memories –I was sure I had seen some of it scaled down in a classroom, but I couldn't be positive. Some had obvious uses –a table with metal bindings, a tray of lethal-looking silver instruments; others I could never place.

What was going on? Even though I could remember nothing specific, I was sure I had a family above the ground, a family who must be worried about me. My last true memory was of daylight before being dragged into the sewer system by unknown assailants.

As I raised myself to my knees, I saw I was in a glass cage. It was a large enclosure, but still a prison. Some deep unease crept through me, some instinct that told me I didn't like being imprisoned. I tapped at the glass lightly, and it seemed to more plastic than normal glass.

There was a tap on the glass, and I looked round to see who was getting my attention. I felt my jaw drop in surprise. Next to me was a boy who looked a few years older than I was, but he was not quite human. His skin seemed to be made up of scales, like those you find on a snake. His eyes were an almost unnatural green sheen, and his pupils seemed to be closer to slits. Something had happened to him and, although my memory was lacking, I had a name for it –genetic engineering, but on a scale that had never been tried before. Whoever was behind this was operating below the law, with no regard for human moralities.

Then it hit me: I had to be altered as well if I was here. But what was different about me? I checked my arms and face –normal pale smooth skin, as far as I could tell. No claws instead of fingernails.

When I glanced over my shoulder, I found the answer right in front of me. Growing out my spine, from the shoulder blades all the way down to the lower back, were huge wings. As I moved my shoulder, I opened my wings to a huge wingspan. I couldn't believe it –I could pass as an angel. With seeing my alteration came a sense of understanding –I felt confined because birds are supposed to be free to fly through the sky, not stuck in a cage –but also a sense of resentment towards whoever it was who had taken me from the light of day and stuck me in a cage.

As I was coming to terms with my wings and realising I was a mutant that had never been seen before, a man stepped in front of the glass. He wore a lab coat, and it didn't take a lot for me to work out that he was responsible for taking me prisoner and mutating me. He had done this to me, and presumably to the boy as well.

I kept my eyes on him, but failed to see the door into my cage open. Two men clad in lab coats and looking capable of great violence advanced on me, brandishing electronic stun-guns until I turned my attention to their weapons.

There was a presumably a speaker system built into my cage, because the voice of the man who I had identified as the cause of my imprisonment boomed through the area (really hurting my ear drums at the same time).

"As you will see, my assistants are both carrying stun-guns that they will use on you in a moment if they detect trouble coming from you. I am Professor Adkins, your creator. I took you from the streets and made you a godly creation.

"Now, before I let you out of that cage, there are rules that will be enforced via stun-guns if you step over the line. There are tests which require some flight, but all flying will be done in one of my specially equipped rooms. During your spells of freedom, you will obey my every word to the letter. As soon as we're finished, it's straight back into the cage. You can fly as much as you like in your own enclosure provided you are on the ground when I or my assistants enter. In other experiments, you are to keep both feet on the ground. To enforce that, you are required to wear a special harness that constricts your wings. If you try to resist, remember these speakers are also set to emit white noise that will greatly upset your advanced hearing.

"I have taken the liberty of creating an identity for you that well suits you. From now on, you are Takara. As you see, you are not the only creation I have here. The boy is known as Tzu, and I would warn you against getting on bad terms with him, particularly as he has the DNA of a cobra in him."

I couldn't believe it. Now I knew where I stood, a successful experiment alongside a boy who had snake instincts as I had bird wings. But just how alike to a snake was Tzu? Only time would tell.

The two assistants were approaching me, carrying a metal contraption that undid like a suit of armour. It must be the constrict Adkins had been talking about using to prevent me even trying to fly. My bird instincts kicked in, ready to display disgust, but I remembered the stun-guns and the emitting of white noise that Adkins had threatened me with. I could see him standing two feet away, and a remote was in his hand with his hand hovering over a single red button. It didn't take a genius to work out that the second he pressed that button I would receive an earful of white noise. With that in mind, I fought my urge to flare out my wings as the assistants put the device around my torso and fastened it.

When it was on, it was apparent it had been tested well to ensure I wouldn't be able to even think of escaping. The assistants pointed me out of the cage and into a chair beside a tray of scalpels and other things you might expect in a doctor's surgery. Adkins came and stood over me.

"It's nothing taxing today, Takara," he said almost soothingly. "All I want to do is monitor your health and check your human and avian cells are combining together probably."

It was actually more taxing than Adkins thought for me. It wasn't that I had never seen needles before, or had never had my eyes tested, but this time I was aware of everything screaming in me to run and try and find a way to daylight and fresh air. But I knew that those stun-guns were ready to deliver a dose of pain if I tried to escape. Adkins had made my position very clear: I was his experiment, and I had no choice but to go through the experiments he had lined up for me. If I tried to fight, he would force me into submission.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's ****Notes**

(1) I DO NOT own Ninja Turtles

(2) Bear with me -the introductions are nearly over!

(3) PLZ review!!

* * *

Adkins didn't just monitor my stats and improve my ability to fly, making me the tough prisoner behind tough polymer glass, but he forced me to fight Tzu time after time. I found out that Tzu was fast, agile and very good at keeping out of sight until he wanted to be seen. His fangs, which slid forward when he opened his jaws wide, were poisonous. But he was barred from using them in our combat. Adkins was training us both up for something –I was sure of it.

I learnt a lot about Tzu during the evenings. Although we were parted by polymer and glass, we developed hand signals that allowed us to exchange information. Tzu had been fourteen when he had first come here, but he had been prisoner for two years before I was brought down. He hadn't lost his memory in the mutation, and he knew he was called Liam Marks. He also knew where he came from. Together we made a pact: if ever we escaped our captivation, we would set out together to find one another's families. It was a desperate hope, but it was one that we clung to. It was the only one we had left.

Although we seemed like two conflicting personalities, we were actually like two sides of the same coin. Tzu was the strong and capable leader, taking the lead in strength and endurance. I was the willingly obedient lesser of the duo, but the more intelligent. Adkins was spending a lot of time with me, perfecting my technological and logical skills. I was the brains and Tzu was the muscle. It worked well for us.

We lived in our prisons for two whole years, never fully knowing why we were being trained to fight or why my computer and problem solving skills were being raised to new and high levels. But gradually I was being taught to hack the securest networks around, how to get around the toughest fire walls as though they were made out of a child's building blocks. He must have some plan that he was preparing us for besides keeping us as souvenirs of his genius. I won't deny that he was a genius, but he was mad and dangerous.

Two years after my captivity had begun, when I was sixteen, Tzu and I finally learnt the answer to this riddle.

Adkins was the only man I had seen for years. There were no visits, and it made sense. Who knew we were down here? This was a section of the sewer system that had long ago fallen into disrepair, meaning a new section had to be built, but then remodelled as a hidden laboratory.

But if we had thought Adkins was working alone, we were soon to find out just how wrong that assumption had been.

After two years of life trapped in this underground lab, a tall man arrived unannounced just as I was being herded back into my cage. He had the looks of an American who had lived in Japan for decades, so much so he was wearing clothing associated with martial artists. Adkins hurried over to him, looking both awed and somewhat fearful. This man had to be involved in some way, but I could not see how.

The two circled the lab, going over computers and files, before their attention focused on Tzu and me. As they came to stand in front of my cage, I could see Adkins swelling. It was almost as though he would burst. I had long trained myself to lip-read, so it didn't take me long to figure out what he was saying.

"And this is my newest creation, and I personally find Takara the best of the duo. As you can obviously see, she has had her human DNA combined with that of a falcon. Due to the fact she was fit and fast before I seized her, her system adapted better than I thought possible. She has a lifespan of over a hundred years now.

"She may not be the most skilled fighter, but she can hold her own in a defensive position. I've trained her to be the intelligent one of the two, but they do work best as a team."

"I will see for myself," the man said. He turned away from the glass, and moved back towards Tzu's tank. He stood in front of Tzu for several minutes before returning to Adkins who stood uneasily in front of my cage.

"Personally I'd prefer to keep only the reptile. He is all I really need. But if they do work as a team, I cannot order the destruction of one and expect the other to work fully. So name your price."

As they turned away to haggle, I looked at Tzu. I saw it in his eyes: he was as disturbed by this man's attitude to me just as I was. He would have separated us, and permanently. No matter how temporarily it may be, we weren't willing to be separated. We had to get out of here before we fell into his hands.

After several moments, the adults obviously reached an agreement, and we were sold to the man we knew so little about. So that had been Adkins' meaning for abducting and creating us –just to sell us on to a benefactor who couldn't care less about me. I was sure Tzu would be released whereas I would be left in the cage. But we didn't even know why we were created, besides to be sold for some unknown reason.

Adkins paused in front of my cage and looked carefully at me. It seemed he was most proud of me as a creation, but that clearly wasn't a view shared by his partner. I could almost see regret in his eyes, but I had long ago taught myself I was nothing to him.

It was our last night in this underground lab, one way or another. Tomorrow the man would be here to collect us and start using us for his own ends with no consideration as to what he was doing to us or how we felt about it. To him, I was the useless one. But if Tzu and I were together, working as a team, nothing could stop us. That was the only reason he had brought me, I was sure –to make sure Tzu would work at his full potential.

Normally the two assistants were here to keep an eye on the monitors and prevent any night escape attempts, but they had left with the mysterious man. Adkins never stayed in the underground lab, choosing to stay somewhere overhead.

Since there was no one around to try and prevent our escape, this was the perfect opportunity. And it was also our last chance to make it to the surface. But our cages were both made out of tough polymer that was almost unbreakable. The cages were almost unbreakable, but not quite. And the doors had a specific access code. Thanks to Adkins' training, I had been able to memorise Tzu's. So if I got out, I was in the ideal position to get Tzu out. If he busted out, I could signal my own code through to him.

But first we had to take care of the alarms. I could sense tripwire and alarms built into the polymer of my cage. We had never tried to break out before, so we had no idea how long it would take before reinforcements arrived. And the last thing either of us wanted to do was summon anyone with stun-guns or worse.

As soon as the lights were dimmed for the evening, my eyes adjusted to the light from Tzu's tank. He always had a light on to keep warm. Being mixed with a snake meant that his blood heat fluctuated between night and day, so at night, he had to have some artificial heat.

I unfolded my wings, rising on the air to the first corner of the cage. This was delicate work; if I got this wrong, the alarm would trigger automatically. Then we were in major trouble.

Barely two minutes later, just as I was preparing to finish off the one alarm, was tapping quite fiercely on the wall joining our enclosures together. I glanced at the computer bank and saw that someone or something had tripped an alarm in the corridor leading to the lab. I cursed mentally as I returned to the ground, curling up.

I wasn't prepared for what happened next. There was a beep at my door and it hissed back. Still I did not look up, even though I knew there were only three people with the access code to my door. I felt a hand fall on my shoulder, and then someone was shaking me awake. Guessing it was safe to pretend to wake up I uncurled from my sleeping position to find Adkins crouching over me.

"I want you to get out of here, Takara," he said as I struggled to come to terms with what I was seeing and hearing. Adkins was risking his own neck to get me to safety? Talk about the unexpected. Adkins ploughed on

"I made you to create a team of you and Tzu. I created you on that man's whim when all along he had no desire to use you. If he wants only Tzu, I'm willing to give up everything and let you go so you can work as I trained you. You know enough to survive on our own."

"But why did you do this to us?" I asked, desperate to know the answer to at least one puzzle before I left. I was planning to escape, but this sudden change of heart was more than I had ever expected.

"I wanted to prove that human life could be altered with animal DNA, a theory that had caused me to lose all fame and favour. When I met Saki, I was a disgraced man. He made me an offer: if I could create two beings to his specifications, he would see me returned to the history books as one of the greatest scientists in the world.

"But when he turned on you, I saw he was only interested in himself. I want you to know freedom, so I'm giving up everything to hide you. Now, get out of here. And trust no one."

"What about Tzu?" I asked, looking at the cage next to me. Tzu was there, looking confused. If we were to escape, there would be no time to fill him in until we were out of the immediate danger zone. There was no way I was going to leave him behind.

"I know you know the code to his cage," Adkins said. "I spotted you watching my fingers on the pad several times. That's why I'm so proud of you –you are so sharp, not to mention intelligent. Take your friend and go."

I got to my feet and darted for the entrance. I looked to the man who was setting us free, and almost said thanks. But I remembered the experiments I had suffered at his whim for years, the way I had been no more than machine to him as he pushed me to the limits of my strength and endurance with no mercy. There was no way he would hear a thank you from us now, not until he had shown himself to be a real ally.

I darted to Tzu's cage and ran the numbers through my brain, tapping in the right code as soon as I was sure of it. Automatically the door swished open, and I gestured my friend out into the open. As he raided the cupboards that we knew held food and medical supplies, I grabbed the tools I had been trained to use to disable alarms and rewire security. Then I spotted a laptop on the desktop. I had been using it for weeks, as part of my training. I knew it had constantly changing pass codes, making it completely undetectable. And Adkins had given me a valuable word: Saki. Once I knew more, I could hack into the security of that cruel man and find out all that he was hiding. I snatched it up and took off.

Tzu and I knew no further than the entrance of the lab, so as soon as we had forced our way out, we were automatically lost. The stink got to me; it was awful. I was sure it was ten times worse than it had been when I had first been dragged into the underground. I guess that goes to show you just how much I had been altered.

"Takara!" I heard Tzu call out. I turned to see him gesturing to me to join him. "Come on," Tzu was waiting for me at the far end of the tunnel. As I joined him, I saw he had had the foresight to grab a map of the system. I remembered seeing one tacked up to the wall, but I would have never thought to grab it. I was happy to let Tzu take the lead. I hurried to join him, and we ran side by side away from the place we had been held as prisoners for years.

Side by side we ran. I could feel my wings aching to unfold, to soar closer to freedom with every beat. But if I chose a wrong turn while flying, I would never find Tzu in this maze of pipes. So for now I was content to keep my feet on the ground.

We kept up the pace for several hours. As we realised that daybreak was coming, we slowed down, considering the map several times, looking for an entrance to the surface. We were running out of time, and we both knew it.

"We can't keep getting lost," Tzu panted as we ducked into a dark area to catch our breath. All I was worried about was that someone would hear us either running in the filthy water or recovering our breath. "We have to get out of this maze."

We came to a junction of many tunnels. Below us the water churned into a whirlpool, and around and above us the pipes spat out their debris.

"Now where do we go?" I asked, looking around. Tzu groaned, sinking to his knees.

"I don't know," he admitted. "But we have to get out of here. I'm going stir-crazy."

I knew Tzu had been imprisoned for four years below the streets, and he was only a couple of years older than I was. If I was getting nervous, I couldn't imagine how he was feeling. Perhaps he was already imagining the cruel man closing in on us, his cold eyes on our backs. I was trying my hardest not to think about it. But it was obvious to me that I was losing the brave fearless side of my friend –my only one in the world now. It was up to me to help him pull through.

"We can make it," I said, raising him to his feet. "Come on, Tzu, we can make it out. So let's hear your plan. You always had a plan before. And we're together, and nothing's going to separate us."

I think I managed to give him the boost needed. I was devoted to him, and he had to hide his fear in my presence to be the leader I knew. He straightened up and turned his attention to the map.

"We need to get to the highest pipeline. That will take us up to just below street level. After that, it's a matter of finding a manhole cover. But the question is how to get up there."

He wasn't fooling me –he knew as well as I did that I would have to carry him up.

"Come on, what's the point of having wings if I'm not going to use them?" I asked, spreading my wings and motioning for him to get on my back. He quickly did so and took a firm grip as I pushed off. My wings were strong enough to bear the extra weight of Tzu as well as my own body weight. We gained height, knowing our lives depended on my endurance. If my strength failed, we would freefall right into a rather disgusting cesspit.

At last I reached the tunnel I was aiming for –the highest one I could find. I let Tzu slip off my back before tucking my wings tight to my sides. I was getting desperate to find a way out into fresh air, to stretch my wings probably for the first time ever.

Tzu was already ahead, and I hurried to catch up to him. We proceeded at a walk; according to the map, we were not far from the manhole that would take us to the surface. I was examining the walls as we proceeded –they seemed newer, better maintained.

Then I saw the alarm attached to the wall, and put out a hand to halt Tzu. Who the hell would put up alarms in the sewers? It looked quite new, and was ready to trigger if someone passed by it. I was sure it would capture a picture of whoever tripped it, and neither Tzu nor I could afford to be caught on camera.

But proximity alarms required an invisible wire to be touched before setting off. So if I could discover it, we could avoid the camera and alarm, and still escape.

I knelt close and struck a match from a box of them in my bag of tricks. I could sense Tzu watching beside me in complete silence. He knew it was best not to disturb me. He had seen me disarm a fake atomic bomb in five minutes from inside his cage. Tzu knew I was capable of overcoming technical problems.

The match did the trick, revealing a laser beam running from the device to the floor of the tunnel, creating a rather tricky path through. You had to get high, and move fast. I backed off and leapt into the air, using my wings to gain more speed and height. I passed through easily. Landing, I tucked my wings in and pivoted, gesturing for Tzu to follow.

Tzu leapt into the air and although he had enhanced jumping skills, they didn't measure up to having wings. He was fast, but he was nowhere near high enough. Although we could hear nothing, I knew he had tripped the alarm and a beacon would be flashing on the console of whoever had set up that device. We had to get out of here as the alarm light colour switched from green to red.

We ran, thinking only about getting away from the proximity alarm before the owners came to check the camera. One way or another, they had a picture of Tzu in mid-leap.

"I'm sorry," Tzu panted as we ran.

"Don't worry about it," I said, concentrating on running. Without noticing it, we had swapped roles as leader and follower. "We'll be in a worse position if we're caught. So let's avoid that."

As we ran down one tunnel, we heard a vibrating noise coming from ahead, and headed straight for us. It was coming at a great velocity, and whatever it was, it was large but fast. I could tell by the sound. I was sure it belonged to whoever had set up that proximity alarm.

We came to a halt and pulled into a smaller connecting tunnel, ducking out of immediate sight. There we stopped, listening hard. About a minute later, a huge black thing pulled up just in front of the tunnel and we could hear voices talking over the now idling engine.

"So why are stopping here again?" asked one voice.

"Whatever we tagged moved down here," said another.

"Well, that tunnel's way too small for the Skimmer to get through," said a third voice, and this one sounded more like a leader than the previous two. "I guess that means we go on foot from now on."

My ears went up at that. Tagged? What could that mean? Only one possibility came to me off-hand –that proximity alarm hadn't caught an image of Tzu. Instead some sort of tracker had been placed on him. I glanced at his ankle and saw a small green tracker attached to him. Tzu saw it as well, and his eyes widened with fear.

As long as we were together, we could both be caught in a matter of moments. But I wasn't going to abandon him. Besides, I hadn't been taught all about mechanics and tracking for nothing. I knew all we had to do was remove or jam the signal, and whoever had planted it would lose all trace of it.

But we had no time to jam it. We would have to remove it. I crouched down and, after hesitating, pulled at the device. It came off no problem, and I crushed it.

"Hold it," said the second voice that we had heard as we got to our feet and moved away. "I've completely lost the signal now."

"So what does that mean? What are we dealing with?" said the first voice, sounding nervous now.

"Whatever we're dealing with, Mickey, we can crush it," said a voice we had not heard before, one more aggressive than any of the others. I didn't like the sound of it. Whoever that voice belonged to was ready to do anything.

"Wait, Raph," said the third voice again. "Let's not go charging in without knowing what we're dealing with. Don, what are we dealing with?"

"It's definitely intelligent," said the second voice again, presumably belonging to whoever this Don was. "And judging from the inbuilt DNA sampler built into that tracker, it's... well, that can't be right."

This situation just got better and better. So now we knew these four had built a proximity alarm that, instead of photographing its quarry, planted a tracker that also collected a DNA sampler to identify and locate the creature. And by the sound of it, this Don couldn't believe what the readout was showing him.

"Did you have to come out with that line?" asked the first voice we had heard. Judging from what I could tell, that was Mickey. "Just spit it out, Don. Is it good news, or turn-around-and-head for-home news?"

"I can't be sure, Mickey," said Don. "I'm getting a reading that says we're dealing with something that is about two-thirds human and one-third cobra."

"But how is that possible?" asked the third voice. It was the only one I didn't have a name for.

"At a wild guess, Leo, I'd say genetic engineering," said Don. "It's how and why I don't get. But whatever it is, it might need help. Come on."

I knew this group was smart, and seemed to have no connection to the man who had brought me and Tzu; they seemed to know absolutely nothing about us. But we didn't know that for sure, and we couldn't risk falling into a trap. Until we knew more, everyone was a suspect and enemy. Call us paranoid, but unless we learnt to suspect all we weren't going to survive for long without being caught.

We backed off, aware that the four were only metres away and could therefore probably hear us. Tzu had recovered enough to resume his position as leader, and he pulled me away. I followed him down an adjoining tunnel that loomed out of the black.

We ran, aware that we were making enough noise to allow whoever it was behind us to follow even without a tracker. We had to get out soon, before they even caught a glimpse of us. I could almost sense the four as they came after us. Glancing back, I saw four torches reflecting at the back wall of the pipe we were running along. It was a matter of time before they turned the corner.

Tzu suddenly pulled up, his hand feeling the wall.

"I think this is a ladder," he said. "Come on."

He began to climb, and I glanced down the tunnel. The light of the torches was getting closer. Tzu was already at the top, wrestling with the manhole cover. He succeeded just as one of our pursuers turned the corner and flashed his light around, catching me in the eyes. The light was blinding, and I raised my hand to shield my arms.

"Takara!" Tzu hissed from street level, and I began to climb.

"Wait!" I heard a voice call from behind me, but I was waiting for nothing. We had come this far, and I wasn't about to get recaptured or intercepted this close to freedom and fresh air. I hurried up as fast as I could, and soon Tzu and I were securing the manhole cover over the exit, cutting off the pursuit route.

Below the streets, the four stood around the closed manhole cover as Donatello tried to open it. But it seemed hopeless; whoever that had been, they had secured it tightly. By the time they opened it, the two could be out of the city.

They had all seen the wings of that girl, and were sure they were as real as they were.

"It won't budge," Donatello said, returning to the floor. "I'd guess that girl was the partner of the snake-boy whose DNA I got. But whoever they were, they were desperate to get out of this system. They're both running from something."

"They seemed afraid of us more than anything," Leonardo said. "They led us quite a chase, and they are intelligent. But we have to find them. They're in trouble, and two mutant humans are just as visible as us four among humans. We can help them."

"I don't think they know that," Raphael said. "I would say it's going to take a lot to make them trust us. I'd say they won't trust even regular humans."

"Helping them is a great idea, Leonardo," Michelangelo said. "But I see some problems in that. How do we find two kids when one has got wings, and could go anywhere? And how do we get them to trust us?"

"All creatures, human and animal, need certain things," Leonardo said. "The way I see it, they will look for food and drink, shelter and security. All we have to do is stake out the most likely places where they would go."

"But if they are on the run from something, aren't they more likely to act in an unexpected way?" Michelangelo asked. "And even if they didn't, there must be dozens of likely hiding places and ways of getting food without being noticed."

"We just have to stake them all out," Leonardo said. "Don, get ready to survey the rooftops tonight. Raphael, take the Shell Bike and drive around the roads. Mickey, you're coming in the Sub-Shuttle with me to look from the river. And we've got April and Casey to cover above ground as well."


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Notes**

(1) i DO NOT own Ninja Turtles!

* * *

We stood over the manhole for several moments, alert to the fact that we may be pursued. After several minutes, it was clear we had jammed that manhole pretty well, and the chase was off...for now.

Then I looked around, and saw we were standing in alley, hidden from view of early commuters, and the sun was only just starting to rise over the rooftops. I breathed in experimentally and, despite the stinking scent of petrol being emitted from every nearby vehicle, it was the cleanest air I had breathed in; this was fresh air in a sense I couldn't remember. This was the surface where I belonged, and my bird wings would allow me to fly on the breeze as never before.

I had an unsurpassable desire to unfold my wings and ride the air currents, at least for a while.

Tzu brought me back to earth by grabbing one of my wings back into a position he had used a hundred times in fights, and I knew even the smallest pressure could either seriously damage or even break my wing.

"Listen to me, Takara," he said, putting all his weight on my wing, forcing me to drop to one knee. "We can't risk being seen, and I can't risk you being a loose cannon that can fly. We need somewhere to hole up first, somewhere no one would think to check in a search for us. Don't forget, we're on the run.

"I'm going to let you fly now to scout around. I know you're a fast flier, so your being seen isn't a problem as long as you don't do anything to attract attention. Are we clear?"

"We're clear," I said. "Now can you let me up? You're hurting my wing."

Tzu released me, and he looked a little ashamed at his behaviour in the few moments it took me to ditch the bag and laptop that I still had in my arms, unfurl my wings and push into the air, sweeping my wings back, pivoting in midair to prevent tangling myself in the washing lines. I travelled straight as a bullet ever higher until I passed above the height of the rooftops.

I will never forget that first flight in the open air, where I belonged.

This was what I had been mutated for. Due to my mutated DNA, my lungs were lined with air pockets that increased my buoyancy, making it easier for me to take off and fly. Those air pockets also meant I could cruise in the air without feeling the lack of oxygen at this height.

As I passed over the houses, I only had to dodge to one side to dodge a tall pole rising from the largest building in New York –yep, the Empire State Building itself. I practiced my manoeuvres over the city, spiralling and twirling in the air as I had been taught in the simulation chamber back at that underground cesspit.

Now I knew where to do and how to perform every move I had been taught outside.

There were, as I had expected, a number of small shops with homes over them in the part of town I was passing over. Some were obviously owned, but there were some ones that seemed to be neglected and full of dust and debris.

One was relatively small and I could see it was an ideal place to lurk until we had a better idea of our surroundings. I could see that it wasn't much when I perched on the windowsill, but there was no sign of occupation. There were no windows, but that was a plus to me. I could get in and out easily, and that would be crucial if we had to make a quick break for it. My eyes would have picked up whether any dust had been moved by footsteps, but there was no such sign.

It would be a good place to hide and digest a meal until we had a more definite plan over staying hidden and alive.

I let go of the windowsill, spreading my wings and gliding on the air currents. I had a decent idea where I had left Tzu, and I made my way back over the now waking city. We would have to move quickly if we were to reach our new hideaway before the city was bustling. Then we would have come up with some plan to get food without buying or stealing. A snake-boy and a girl with wings would be easy descriptions to remember, and we couldn't afford to leave any traces on paper.

As I approached the alley, I saw someone on a rooftop, waving his arms for attention. I saw at a second glance that it was Tzu, and I went down for a landing with a nose dive. I loved showing off my ability to fly, something he could never hope to copy.

"Well?" he asked as I pulled in my wings, tucking them close to my side, enjoying the warmth that coursed through them due to the exercise.

"I found somewhere to lie low," I reported. "It hasn't been occupied for ages, and it's not surrounded by other shop holders."

"Good," Tzu said. He was holding both the bag of food he had raided and the bag of tricks I had taken. As he holstered them over his shoulder, I spread my wings, readying myself to take his weight and the bags. My strength had been tested time after time in the laboratory, and I knew I was capable of bearing his weight, but not for more than an hour.

As soon as he was clinging on, I whipped my wings open, catching the air currents and swooping up high above the city before altering my course slightly to fly us into Manhattan. As I had felt once before, euphoria whipped through my veins as thick as adrenaline, even if I was carrying a very air-wary passenger.

We flew over the city, and I could feel Tzu's grip growing steadily tighter. He was nervous. The sooner I landed and let him off, the happier he would be. This time I was going as fast as I could, aware that the moment I felt drained was the moment I would lose height and risk crashing, headed straight for our destination.

At last I slowed to a glide, coming down at the window in narrowing circles. When I drew level with the shattered glass, Tzu let go of me and clambered through. I knew he was testing the air for any sign that I had been wrong, so I contented myself with hovering outside, practising flying slowly and softly to avoid detection.

A few moments Tzu appeared at the window, gesturing me in. Without hesitating, I swooped into the room and landed gracefully a few feet inside. I took a better look around the apartment as I drew my wings tight to my sides. It was dusty, but still had a couple of couches and even a rather battered TV set. The wall under the window had a radiator to keep out the chilly bite of the night.

As the city woke up, we settled down to eat some of the food we had brought with us from the underground laboratory and then for some well-needed sleep. We had had a rather eventful night. I curled up on a moth-eaten sofa, allowing my right wing to lie across my face, creating a warm layer of insulation. Tzu tuned the radiator on, and curled up with his back to it, allowing the warmth to hit his cold reptilian blood.

*

I don't know how long we both slept, but I was first to wake. Tzu was still curled up against the radiator, his eyes shut and breathing regularly. It was quieter than it had been when I fell asleep to the sounds of sirens and traffic noise. But it wasn't yet night; in fact it was barely evening.

I eased myself from my position on the couch and looked around. Now we had found somewhere to curl up, I was curious to find out just what the shop had sold when it had been opened. There was a spiral staircase leading down to the lower floor, and I slipped down it. That was when I halted.

While the upper floor had shown no sign of recent use, the shop downstairs told another story. There were boxes and crates piled high, and there were clear signs that someone had been here very recently. In fact, several people had been here, judging by the number of footstep marks that had been left.

I decided to investigate further, but I couldn't risk leaving footprints that might alert whoever it was to the fact that someone besides themselves had been in here. I swept my wings open, hovering over the boxes even though I rose and fell with each beat. These cramped conditions were not ideal for flying, but I had no other way of travelling without being detected. I flew up until I was parallel with the top of the nearest pile and opened the box.

Inside sat a number of what looked like bric-a-brac of laptops, video recorders and DVD players. You didn't see this many valuable machines sitting in boxes in dark and abandoned shops –unless they were stolen. My guess –this was a hoard of stolen property that was just waiting to be moved. And I had a sneaking suspicion that I was right. If the gang came and caught us, we were in trouble.

I sneaked back up the stairs after closing the box and making sure there was no trace I had stood here. I had to tell Tzu, not because I thought we were in immediate danger but because I didn't want him to be unprepared for the fact we might have to move if they ventured upstairs.

Tzu was a bit moody when I shook him awake –he was even more worn out by the previous night's events than I was. Perhaps he had been worried about our future more than I was; as the leader, he was the one who had to come up with the plans.

"I think we're in a spot of bother," I admitted in a whisper. "There's a hoard of equipment downstairs, and I'd say it's stolen."

"What?" he hissed at me; he got to his feet and pushed me back hard so that I fell to the floor as he hurried to the stairs to check the shop below us. He had never been as shocked as he was now, and I couldn't help feeling I had not been careful enough. If we were caught, it would be because I didn't check well enough before returning.

Tzu was back in a few moments, and he held out a hand to pull me to my feet.

"I'd say that stuff will be shifted in a few days' time, and then it will be safe. Criminals never keep their stuff in one place for more than a few days in case it gets detected and reported to the police. So as long as we keep quiet when we're here and they don't come up here, we should be safe here."

"You seem to know a lot about how criminals act," I said, brushing myself off.

"Trust me, you don't live in New York without knowing how criminal gangs work," Tzu said. "Before I was abducted, I kept an eye on several gangs in New York. It was something I did in my spare time, for a friend called Casey."

I looked at Tzu and felt a sorrow hit me. He knew who he was, where his family lived, remembered his past life. I had no such memories, just vague pictures and faces I could not put a name to. Tzu saw his words had affected me, and laid a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Takara," he said. "I promise, if we can ever truly be free, we'll find out who you are and return to our families. We'll be friends forever." He held out his hand.

I nodded, accepting his apology and joining him in the pact by shaking hands. Then I heard something: the vibrating rumble of a heavy vehicle approaching the area where we were hidden. Tzu hit the floor, motioning for me to put out the lights we had found on our arrival. I plunged us into darkness and found my way to Tzu by the dull light cast by a streetlight outside one of the shattered windows.

We gazed over the windowsill as a black armoured truck pulled out outside the shop over which Tzu and I were hiding. The passenger door opened and a man stepped out. He banged on the side of the truck, and the rear doors opened, allowing even more to spill out. I counted at least twenty.

"Oh, no," Tzu moaned. He was looking worried; I could tell even in the poor light left by the streetlight.

"What's wrong?" I asked in a whisper. "Who are they?"

"These are Purple Dragons, the most vicious criminal gang in New York," Tzu said. "I've tangled with them before, and they show no mercy to anyone who gets in their way. And it's said that they have underworld connections."

"So what do we do?" I asked.

"We stay quiet as mice and hope they don't venture up here."

We heard a window smash downstairs and then the thud of numerous feet moving along the floor below us. We remained absolutely still, afraid that even the smallest sound of movement would bring them down on us.

"OK guys, get this lot to the truck as quickly as you can," said someone downstairs and there was a bustle down below us as men began moving boxes around. Over the noise, it was safe for us to talk in whispers.

"I guess they're moving out right now," I said. Tzu nodded, still very uptight. I knew we were dealing with major criminals, and if we were caught above their shop of hoarded stolen property then we would be in much worse trouble than we were in right now. Thankfully there were no boxes up here, so the only reason they would come up here was if they heard us. So we stayed crouched under the window through which we had seen their approach, hardly daring to breathe.

"It's too dangerous to stay up here right now," Tzu said. "Let's get onto the roof, and wait for them to leave before returning. Once they're gone, it'll be safe to go back in."

I nodded my agreement and raised myself onto the windowsill. Tzu crept lightly across to the bags we had left beside my couch as I perched where I was, ready to go as soon as I had the bag with my tools and laptop in it.

"Met you on the roof," I whispered before letting myself fall forward into the air. My wings unfurled and I beat them once to catch the air currents rising from the ground before spiralling upwards. Watching the window, I saw Tzu swing the bag of food over his shoulder and make a leap from the window for the nearest washing line.

I had thought he had it, but I was wrong. He missed his jump by about two inches and would have plummeted to the ground if I had not tucked in my wings and dived after him.

As it was, although I caught him, we were too close to the ground to allow me to pull up and recover. I didn't crash into a wall, but I did collide with a bin, knocking it over. I was sure the men would have heard that. There was no time for ceremony or care –Tzu, who had been left unscarred by my actions, dragged me out of sight behind a bin, pulling my wing close to my side and covering my mouth. I was in pain –I had seriously damaged my wing in that dive and failure to recover –but I was aware of the fact I had attracted attention from this ruthless gang.

"Perhaps it was just a cat looking for food?" one of the men's voices suggested.

"It made too large a noise to be a cat, or even a racoon. Whatever's done here is large," argued another.

"What if it's one of those kung-fu lizards?" asked another voice, sounding really nervous. "I don't know about you lot, but I've had enough of getting attacked by them."

"Don't be a coward," a fourth jeered. "Besides, they come out of the shadows, when you least expect them. Whatever's down here has no near way that sort of stealth."

I could feel Tzu tensing, and I guessed the Purple Dragons were closing in on us, armed to the teeth. I was in pain, in no condition to fight, and Tzu would be outnumbered about twenty to one. It would be so simple for them to catch us.

"Purple Dragons," said another voice, further away, almost at the end of the alley if my ears were still working probably. "Come out and play!"

"It's that vigilante!" said one of the Purple Dragons who was closing in on us. There was a harsh angry roar of the Dragons as they abandoned the hunt to attack the unknown man who had distracted them. The sounds of battle reached my ears.

Tzu moved to lay me on my front, ensuring we remained hidden from view from all the fighting humans. I could feel him running his fingers lightly over my wings one at a time. He paused on my right wing twice, just at the point where shoulder blade and wing joint, and also over one of the long wing bones.

"You've seriously hurt this wing," he said quietly to me, over the noise of the fight. "You've got a strain at the joint and a broken bone. It'll take weeks to recover, and you'll be fairly helpless until you recover."

"At least you're not dead," I panted.

"And you paid a high price to ensure my safety," Tzu said; he sounded stern, but he clasped my hand in a gesture of thanks. We were still together, and that was the most important thing to the pair of us.


	5. Chapter 5

i do not own Ninja Turtles

* * *

Suddenly I was aware that the sound of battle had died away, and as I realised it so did Tzu. He peered around the bin as the vigilante who had been fighting the Purple Dragons put away his weapon and moved to come closer.

Tzu let me lean against the bin before stepping out, letting his cobra-like fangs slid forward, determined to make the man back off to defend me.

"I'm not going to hurt you," the man said, taking the bag of weapons from around his shoulders. He spoke softly, gently, almost like a snake charmer. But Tzu wasn't buying it. The man threw his bag at his feet. "I'm not armed anymore."

From where I reclined, I peered around the bin to see Tzu glance at the bag, then he seemed to do a double-take, bending down to examine the weapons. He glanced up at the man sharply.

"Let me see your face," he said, and it was an order. The man lifted up what I saw was a hockey match. He had a head of black hair framing a pair of blue-black eyes that seemed to burn with some unknown passion. He was well built and muscular, and looked tough.

"Is that you, Casey?" Tzu asked. The man frowned, and then amazed recognition passed across his face.

"Liam Marks, is that you? What happened to you?"

Then Tzu and the stranger were embracing, and Tzu was beaming as I had never seen before. Tzu turned to me.

"Takara, this is Casey Jones, the vigilante I used to work with against the Purple Dragons. We can trust him. Casey, this is my friend Takara."

I remembered Tzu mentioning a Casey when the Dragons had first appeared, but I hadn't expected to meet him so quickly. It was also weird to hear Tzu's real name used –I was so used to calling him Tzu I had forgotten he had his full memory.

"I see there's a lot explaining to be done," Casey said, crouching in front of me. "But it hasn't escaped my attention that your friend's hurt, Liam. Where are you staying, and how did you tangle with those Dragons?"

"We were staying on the second floor of the store where the Dragons were holding the goods," Tzu said. "I thought it would be safer to get out of the building until they were gone. I failed to catch one of the lines, and Takara came after me. I think you can work out the rest for yourself."

"So it looks to me that you could do with a new hiding place," Casey said. "I think I can offer you such a place."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a mobile phone. Before he could even begin to dial, Tzu had knocked it out of his hand and grabbed him, pushing him back against the wall.

"Liam, what are you doing?" he asked, and I heard a tremor in his voice that had not been there before. "You need somewhere safe, and I have friends who can tend to Takara."

"Casey, we can't trust anyone else. I knew you for years. You taught me how to fight, and I trust you with my life. But no one else can know about us."

"You've changed, Liam," Casey said, pulling loose. "Well, I'll get you to somewhere safe; I know somewhere your friend can recover without fear of discovery. Come on, help me lift her."

I felt Tzu –it was hard to think of him by any other name than the one I had spoken for years –and Casey lift me between them and carry me slowly down the alley. I was placed in the back of something, and I sensed Tzu sit beside me. A few moments later, there was a vibration and we were off.

*

Tzu sat still, one hand resting on Takara's shoulder, letting her know he was right next to her. She was quiet now, wrapped under a thick warm blanket as he was. She moaned in pain, her wing wrapped in makeshift bandages to prevent her from moving it.

He could have died in that fall if Takara hadn't come down for him, but she had paid a heavy price. Thank goodness Casey had been around to lure the Purple Dragons away from them both after Takara had been hurt.

She was so important to him. If anything happened to her, he wasn't sure he would be able to go on as well as he was now. She was intelligent, and sharp. If she hadn't seen that proximity alarm or taken off that tracker in the sewers, they would have been caught before even making it to the surface. Now she had hurt herself in an attempt to protect him, it was his turn to return the favour.

*

In the cab, Casey sat in silence as he drove around the roads, thinking hard. He had received word from Raphael that they were looking for two mutated kids. But he would never have expected one of those kids to be Liam, one of his best protégées.

The Marks family had blamed him in part for their son's disappearance, saying he had turned their son into a rebel in a dangerous city. But those words had been spoken in grief, and Casey had promised to try and find their son. He had never expected him to turn up a mutated boy, one of the pair hunted by an unknown enemy, scared and on the run.

And then there was the girl, Takara. The bond between the two was strong, he could sense it. Liam stood guard over her, and now he sat beside her in the trailer. There was a definite team spirit between them. But she was hurt, and needed help. And he would not betray Tzu's trust in him. But he had to let his friends know he would be out of town for some time.

He pressed the speed-dial on the phone, calling April. She picked up on the second ring.

"What have you got, Casey?" she asked. He hated lying to her, but at least it was easier over the phone.

"Nothing," he said. "It's all quiet downtown. Look, I won't be able to help for a few nights, OK? Some family business has popped up. I will be back as soon as I can." He hung up before April could express her disappointment.

He knew the perfect spot to go to allow the girl to recover; right out in the countryside, away from the noise and bustle of the city. At least she would be able to fly once her wing was mended; he would also have the chance to convince at least Takara to trust his friends on his word.

*

It seemed that they had been driving for hours. Tzu was getting cold, and he fretted over what effect the cold would have on the injured Takara. He wrapped her up tightly and settled down to sleep for a while.

At last, he felt someone shaking him awake. When he opened his eyes, he saw the bright morning sky streaming into the trailer in which they had been riding. Casey was kneeling next to him, shaking him into consciousness. As soon as he saw he was awake, Casey turned to Takara. Without turning to consult Tzu, Casey had picked Takara into his arms and was leaving the trailer.

Tzu hurried after him, and saw a farmhouse only a few feet away. It looked abandoned, and it was definitely a good place for Takara to recover. Casey laid her on a bed in the upper storey before turning his attention to the damaged wing.


	6. Chapter 6

**i do not own ninja turtles

* * *

**"Tear these into strips of bandages," he commanded Tzu, who hovered beside him, always mindful of his friend, tossing him some old shirts. "And find something to use as a split."

"I can do better than that," Tzu said.

"What are you talking about?" Casey asked.

As answer, Tzu opened the bag he had food and medicine in and produced cotton bandages and a slight shaft of wood. He was glad now he had thought to grab most of the packages in the medicine cupboard before escaping as well as food for several days. Casey took them without a word and delicately splintered and bound the wing tightly.

*

"She should be OK now," he said as I stirred sleepily. "I don't know how long the wing will take to heal fully, but at least the process can start now."

"Thanks, Casey," Tzu said as I raised herself and got off the bed.

"Where are we?" I asked, looking out of the window. I could only just make out the shadow of the city, but it was probably miles away.

"We're on my family's old farm," Casey said. "No one comes here since we moved to the city, but as my mother refuses to sell to other farmers, we still own the surrounding land. It's quite a good retreat."

I remained stationery at the window. I had never felt safer, and here we were miles away from the dangers that I had already come to associate with the city. Now I could recover from my wing injury, a process of several weeks, without having to worry about Purple Dragons or whoever Saki was.

That was a thought. I pulled the laptop out of her bag and turned it on.

"What are you doing?" Tzu asked as I sat cross-legged with the laptop in my lap.

"Searching for any mention of the name Saki," I told him. "Before we escaped, Adkins told me the man who had funded his research and brought for us was called Saki. If we can find anything about him, it may help us avoid him."

"Did you just say Saki? You are running from him?" Casey asked, and I noticed an urgent tone in his voice that I had never expected to hear. Tzu was looking at him as though afraid he had suddenly become unsafe.

"Does the name mean anything to you?" I asked our new ally. I trusted him already. Tzu was happy to be around him, and between the two of them they had protected me and now I was on a one-way ticket to recovery.

"We're talking about one of the most powerful men in the city of New York, someone I and my friends know as the Shredder. He is the leader of a group of deadly ninja assassins known as the Foot Clan, situated right in New York; he is the main source of funds for the Purple Dragons. He is the most ruthless man alive. One of my friends...well, perhaps that story would be best told by him."

This thing ran deeper than I had thought.

"So how do we topple him before he topples us?" Tzu asked.

"If I knew the answer to that, Liam, my friends would have been able to defeat him a dozen times over by now. But he has got a nasty habit of not staying down. Plus he's one of the strongest ninjas alive today."

"You've had dealings with him before?" Tzu asked.

"Not me personally, but my friends have; and they barely escaped alive last time," Casey said. "You two are in deep if you have never heard of the assassin who has control over every other mobster in New York and the Purple Dragons."

"I thought the Foot Clan were only a Japanese gang," I said, having found an archive in the news archives from about fifty years back.

"They came over with their master," Casey said. "And they are causing the same level of damage here as they did in Japan."

I turned back to the laptop screen and soon found an article on Saki. I recognised his face at once. It wasn't a large article, but it did contain essential facts –he was considered an important citizen, who had invested a large chuck of his vast fortune to improving the city's infrastructure. If Casey hadn't told us what I guessed was a hidden truth and if I hadn't seen him with my own eyes in the underground laboratory, I would have never guessed this was the same man.

"You know what I'm hearing, Adkins?" asked the man who had been promised the two hybrids only to find them gone and Adkins locked in one of the cages instead when he had gone to collect them. He had been so furious that he had had harm inflicted on the professor. The wretched man now stood before him, scarred and wretched. "All these fancy words in your report all lead up to one word. The one word I despise –failure! You are no nearer to catching your runaway projects than you were a week ago."

"They are merely more resourceful than I thought, more capable of hiding in the open undetected than I would have guessed," Adkins said. He was getting tired of the way his partner considered his creations merely predictable machines. They were complex human-animal hybrids who were teenagers, but showed no signs of their passing. He was glad he had released them, but he was suffering in leading the hunt for them. Because he didn't want them to be caught, he would have to lead the men searching under his command the wrong way if they got close, but so far there had been very little trace of them.

"I'm fed up of hearing your excuses," Saki said, standing from his chair. "Bring them to me by the end of next week or pay the ultimate price!"

With the warning ringing in his ears, Adkins left the building for the streets. His feet led him away from the stronghold of the Foot Clan and towards Manhattan. He was walking randomly and soon had no idea where he was. All he knew was that this was the area where a group of Purple Dragons had heard a noise while moving their equipment before being jumped by a vigilante who seemed to be quite a thorn in their side.

Now he wondered; that report had come in the night after Takara and Tzu had escaped to the surface. Was there any possible connection? He wandered down the alley and found an answer hidden behind a bin: a large feather, mainly a pale grey in colour, with a band of black on its tip. At a guess, he would say it belonged to a crane hawk. As they were native in Mexico to Argentina, there was only one way such a feather could have got here. And this was much larger than any normal crane hawk's feather.

"Takara," he said quietly. And if they were still sticking together, then Tzu would have been here as well. But something worried him –if there was a sign of her down here and nowhere else, did that mean she was hurt?

He tucked the feather into his pocket, out of sight. If Takara was hurt and Tzu was with her, then there was another mystery: how had they avoided the constant hunt? Every abandoned block, each section of the Central Park and every dark corner had been turned over. But there was no sign of them. Where they with an unknown ally, someone who could have hidden them where no human would normally venture? Or was it possible they could have returned to the laboratory?

He had to know so he could help. He cared for his creation so much he was willing to hide from Saki, to work with his enemies to ensure their safety.

He undid the nearest manhole cover and slipped down it, securing it behind him. Taking a torch out of his pocket, he began to trudge down the stinking sewer. He had forgotten just how badly it smelt.

For several hours he trudged on and met nothing. And yet he knew the creatures the Shredder hated lurked down here. It was only a matter of time before he tripped something. As he was just beginning to give up hope, he heard a vibration that shook the tunnel. He stood still, trying to locate what direction the sound came from.

The huge bulk of the machine came hurtling around a corner at a terrific speed. It stopped short of him, the headlights blinding him until the driver cut the engine.

"Who are you?" one voice asked, assertive and confident.

"I am Professor Robert Adkins," the scientist replied. "If you are who I think you are, I need your help."

"And how could we help you?" asked another voice, tougher and less patient than the other.

"I need help to locate two mutated kids before the Shredder can find them. I fear one is hurt. Takara and Tzu need help."

"How do you know about them?" asked the first voice again.

"I should know everything about them, seeing as I was the one who created them."

"So you're the one they were running from?" asked the second voice again.

"It's not me they flee," Adkins said. "I made them on the orders of the Shredder, but I released them. I can help you find them."

"And at the same time betray them to the Shredder? I think not," snarled the second voice.

"I released them to make sure they wouldn't fall into his hands, and I would never let that happen. He does not respect them as I do."

There was a pause and then the engine started up again.

"Get in, but I'm going to have to blindfold you," the first voice said. Adkins did as he was told, allowing himself to be blindfolded. "OK, let's go. But take it easy, Raphael."

After several minutes, the craft stopped and one of the two let the Professor down from their craft.

"Who is this?" asked a voice. It was one Adkins had never heard before –deep and gravelly, but full of energy.

"Master, this is the man who created the two we're searching for. He says he can help, that he's changed allegiance against the Shredder to ensure their safety," the first voice said.

"Do you trust him, Leonardo?"

"I wouldn't have brought him if I didn't think he was trustworthy, Master," said the voice again.

"Then undo his blindfold and let him see where he is."

The rough cloth covering his eyes was untied and the Professor saw he was in a huge circular section, about two storeys high. Before him stood five creatures he had never seen before, but heard a lot about from the Purple Dragons and various ninjas in the Foot Clan.

One was a rat, but standing on two legs and supported on a cane. Its black eyes were trained on Adkins' face. The other four were turtles, but each at least as large as the rat, and each armed with a different sort of ninja weapon.

"You have entered our territory," the rat said. "Unless we can be sure of your friendship, we cannot allow you to leave."

"I won't betray you, or your allies," the Professor said. He had heard so much about these skilled martial artists that he was filled with nothing but awe.

"I believe you," the rat said. "I am known as Master Splinter, and these are my sons: Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael and Leonardo."

"I have heard a lot about you, but I am honoured to be in your presence," the Professor said. "I am Professor Robert Adkins, although I suppose Professor is no longer a valid title for me."

"Why is that?" asked the blue-masked Leonardo.

"I created creatures out of innocent children, and now I am desperate to find them to protect them. It's been weeks, and there's no sign of them anywhere. Apart from this," he said, holding out the feather. The purple-masked Donatello reached out and took it from him.

"Doesn't this colour pattern belong to a crane hawk?" he asked after studying it.

"Hang on, I think the girl had wings of this colour theme," said Leonardo. "I never caught the whole colour scheme, but I'm sure she had wings like this."

"Takara did have the wings and one-fifth of her DNA make-up is of a crane hawk," Adkins said. "Are you saying you saw her?"

"About six weeks ago, someone tripped a proximity alarm in the tunnels. When we went to investigate, I got a reading of something with a third of cobra DNA with human genes making the rest. When we tracked them down, they were escaping up a ladder to the surface and sealed it shut."

"And six weeks ago I let them go. You must have picked up Tzu, but you saw Takara. That must have been when they escaped to the surface. And the night after, the Dragons reported that there was a noise down the alley next to where they were hiding contraband. I found that feather down there only a few hours ago."

"We can't even trace them that far. But one of our allies did fight some Dragons down that end of town. He hasn't been in contact since that night."

"It's not like Casey to vanish like that. He told us that he had family business to deal with," said a voice from the door leading from the tunnels. Adkins turned to see a young red-haired woman standing there.

"April, this is Robert Adkins. He created the two we're looking for," explained the red-masked Raphael.

"If he was near the alley where the two were, he might have drawn the Purple Dragons' attention away from Tzu and Takara. Is it possible he could have found them?"

"If he had found them he would have phoned us," the orange-masked Michelangelo said. "That was the arrangement."

"I told them not to trust anyone," Adkins said. "Even if they did decide to trust your friend for some reason, I doubt they would have allowed him to phone anyone who could have been a potential enemy. And the length of time he's been missing would indicate he's got one potential injury to cope with."

"So you think one was hurt, and that Casey took them away to hide them while whichever one it was to recover?" Leonardo asked. Adkins nodded.

"Right, I vote we take the Battle Shell and cruise to the most likely place he would go," Raphael said. "Just because we weren't invited doesn't mean we can't just turn up."


	7. Chapter 7

**i do not own Ninja turtles**My wing was well and truly on the mend. Every day I was able to fly and exercise for longer. Six weeks in the countryside had been a perfect vacation to the chaotic running we had done before running into Casey. That had come too close to capture for comfort.

* * *

Tzu was enjoying himself as well. He was constantly wrestling with his friend, and Casey was beginning to introduce us to the 'ways of the ninja', as he called it.

We learnt the basic stances and kicks and punches rather quickly as we had been fighting for years in mock battles against each other.

Another morning dawned on the farm, as crisp and bright as ever before. We had hardly noticed the winter creeping in on us until the first frost had arrived. I was up with first light, stretching my wings, warming them up for the flight I was planning.

"You shouldn't really go anywhere without something to eat first, Takara, and you know it," said a voice behind me. I turned to see Casey behind me, arms crossed. He nodded at the stairs and I obediently headed for the warmth of the fire and a plate of breakfast.

I was amazed by Casey; he was not only the one who had distracted the Dragons from us, the one who had brought us here, the one who had kept us fed and safe while my wing was on the mend. Now my wing was on the mend, he had began teaching us more sophisticated fighting styles and had invited us to make this place our home if we wanted.

As we had no better plan than remaining in this haven, we had agreed to remain. He was a true friend.

By the time I had eaten, Tzu had emerged from his sleep as well and, wrapped up in a fur coat and thick gloves, headed outside to practice his kicking and boxing on a sack of grain Casey had organised for us. After I had allowed my digestion to process most of the food I had had, I opened the window and let myself fall out of it, opening my wings wide.

There were plenty of air currents on this farm –it was just a matter of using them the best way.

Casey's family owned the land around for miles, and it was not really farmed, so it was close to a wilderness. There was always something new to explore. I headed out over the track that led to the farm and out over the trees opposite the farm. It was a beautiful wood, calm and peaceful.

I spotted a huge Douglas fir tree ahead and landed in its branches, pausing to catch my breath. My wing was starting to ache, and I had to flap it hard in an attempt to shake it into life.

But this was the furthest I had been able to fly from the farm so far, which was a good few miles away. I could still make it out, a prick on the top of a hill. I had managed to leave the Jones' territory behind in this direction. Once I had my breath back, I would be able to fly back.

No one else came this way. In six weeks, I hadn't seen a single walker and only tractors ventured down the road with the driveway to the farm. I settled back against the fir tree's bark and closed my eyes, concentrating on the ebb and flow of nature that was all around me.

After a few hours had passed in complete stillness, I opened my eyes. Judging by the height of the sun, it was getting on for midday.

I had to get back –Tzu had been concerned for me for weeks, forbidding me from spending more than three hours out. With my wing still on the rocky side, I could see the dangers of overdoing it. But so far I had been unable to fly continuously out to my furthest limits and back. That strength was taking its time to work its way back into my right wing.

I gathered myself, allowing myself to fall through the air as I so often did.

Halfway between ground and my starting point, I let my wings snap out to their full extent, gliding up above the treetops. On the way back, I practised my nose-diving which was obviously an area that needed work considering I had broken my wing trying to recover from such a manoeuvre.

As I prepared to dive down again, I saw something that did not fit in with the norm I had grown used to.

Below, on the road that connected to the driveway into the farm, was a four-wheeled-drive truck.

I pulled out of the dive, choosing to soar just overhead as I judged how much of a threat it might be. There was only one true destination along this road, and that was Casey's farm. The roof was hidden below camping equipment –whoever was in this was planning to stick around.

I was too lightly built to ram the truck, and I was wary of damaging my wing more than it already was.

But I was strong enough to do a bit of sabotage that would give me the chance to fly past without being seen as well as delay their arrival time, allowing us to prepare or run.

I landed on top of the baggage and found a rope securing some of the bags. I never went anywhere without a weapon of some description. I slipped a knife out of my pocket and slashed at the rope. I managed to sever it, and I tossed several bags in front of the truck, causing it to swerve in an attempt to avoid the baggage.

I gathered all the power in my wings and set off for the farm with all the speed I could as the truck swerved until it was facing back the way it had come.

*

Casey and Tzu were training in the frosty yard when I came in for my landing. I was going a little too fast than was really needed, and landed too soon. The result of my bad timing was that I ended up having to run to slow down, and nearly collided with the front wall of the house.

"What's the rush?" Tzu asked. He had read my face and could see the alarm. Normally I was a whole lot better at landing than that. My worry transferred to him.

"There's someone coming," I panted, getting back to my feet. "I delayed them with a little sabotage, but that won't keep them busy for too long. We have to get out of here, Tzu."

"Hold up!" Casey said, coming over to join us. "All you have to do is to be quiet and keep out of sight. If you hear the sound of fighting, clear off then. Otherwise, it'll be my friends, the ones who have fought Saki plenty of times. They've recuperated here plenty of times before."

Tzu nodded in agreement, and pulled me into the house and into the upper part of the attic, where we slept. I opened the window wide, creating a quick and easy way of getting out if the need arose. Crouching underneath the window reminded me very vividly of hiding above the Purple Dragons' contraband before we panicked.

But this was different –if we had to wing it, Tzu would be on my back and not aiming for a very thin life-line. And there was plenty of room to take off here.

Before long, we could hear the approach of the truck I had attacked drawing closer until I guessed it was a few metres away from the house. There was the sound of doors opening and closing, and then a conversation started.

"What are you guys doing here?" Casey asked. He sounded as surprised as we felt at this unexpected interruption to our recuperation.

"You took off without telling us why you were going away, at least not the truthful version," said a voice. I glanced at Tzu –I recognised that voice. It was the voice of the more aggressive unknown person who had detected us in the subway –the one called Raphael if I remembered rightly.

"What are you talking about?" Casey said. Tzu and I guessed that he had somehow talked to his friends without our knowledge, but they had worked out that he was hiding something.

"I think we both know what we're discussing here," said another voice, a female one I could not place. "We agreed to help the guys find the two, not take them and hide them from the rest."

"Alright, but there were complications," Casey said, abandoning his ignorance act. "Liam was alright, but the girl was hurt. And Liam refused to let me call for you. Trust me, winning their confidence was not easy, and it may have been damaged by your arrival."

"Liam? I thought his name was Tzu," said another voice I could remember from the night of our escape from the sewer system –Leonardo, I was sure of it.

"Tzu was not his original name. Before he disappeared, he was Liam Marks, one of my protégées," Casey said. "I knew him, taught him how to fight and trained him to battle against the Purple Dragons."

"What about Takara? Is she alright?" asked a voice that I recognised in seconds. I had heard it for two years and I had hated it. What was Adkins doing here? Tzu looked as alarmed as I was at the sound of the voice of our tormentor.

"Who's this?" Casey asked, and he sounded surprised. I guess he had never met Adkins before; either that or he was a very good actor.

"This is the man who mutated Tzu and Takara into what they are," said yet another familiar voice from the sewers –Donatello. "Don't worry; he swears to be on our side now. And that means he's no longer with the Shredder."

"Yeah, and he's likely to get shredded now," said the fourth voice I recalled from the sewers –Michelangelo.

"Not funny, Michelangelo," said another unfamiliar voice. "But perhaps we should carry on this conversation in the warmth."

There was the sound of the front door opening and then closing, and the buzz of conversation moved to the room below us.

"What do you reckon?" I asked Tzu, looking to him for leadership.

"Casey seems to trust them, even Adkins. And if he's turned against Saki that can only be good news for us."

"But he told us not to trust anyone, and we ended up relying on Casey," I argued.

"I knew him for years," Tzu countered. "Besides, if he had wanted to betray us, he could have easily done it at any point over the past six weeks. In fact, he could have done so while we were in that trailer on our way here. I know we can trust him, and his friends."

"I hope you're right," I said in reply. "But I'm not staying up here."

I clambered up onto the windowsill and lowered myself onto the snow-covered roof. Keeping a tight grip on the windowsill, I knelt, testing before I was willing to let go. I slid a little of the way, bearing down on the porch. I gripped the edge tightly and swung myself onto the wooden porch, rolling into a crouch.

It was one of the moves Casey had taught me and Tzu during our stay. We had practiced it over and over again, and now I saw it gave you a handy quiet way down the building without detection.

I slipped off the porch and headed for the barn. I knew Tzu would be able to see me, but no one in the house had noticed.

As I swung myself into the rafters, I saw the doors, which I had shut completely, being pushed wide. Four creatures stepped in, creatures I had never expected to see before. They looked like giant turtles that had learnt to stand on their back legs. Casey followed them in.

"Takara, I know you're in here," he shouted. I remained quiet. I had decided to have a bit of fun when I had made the dash for the barn. "These are the friends I told you about –Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and Donatello. They've fought Shredder, who you know as Saki, and they only want to help."

"OK, guys, put your weapons down," commanded one. From the voice, I knew it was Leonardo, who I had already classed as the leader. "I think that since she only knows the basis of our style, we shouldn't really use weapons."

What did he mean by 'our style'? Casey had only refined our technique, but I could get answers out of them once this little game was over.

I had a feeling I knew what was coming –it was a method of training Tzu and I had been put through time after time by Casey since I had recovered enough to fight again.

It was a bit like blind man's bluff as there would be no lights apart from what there was naturally. As the light was dim in here at all times, it was full of shadows, and I knew them all. this was going to be fun.

I drew my knife and sent it spinning as one stepped forward. The knife embedded itself an inch from his foot, causing him to stop and glance up. But he couldn't see me; I had moved while the knife was still flying, choosing a new patch of shadows.

"OK, she means business," said the tough aggressive Raphael, who I could distinguish as he wore a red mask just as Leonardo wore a blue one. "Let's go."

He and his fellows jumped, heading up for the rafters. They were slow, but I could instantly see that they were masters of the talents I had learnt over the past few weeks. Next to them, I looked like a real rookie, apart from the fact that I had the added advantages of knowing the turf and having wings. My stealth flying had really come on.

But I would avoid flying as much as possible, meeting them on their own terms, taking to their level.

The one nearest my hiding place when they reached the rafters was one wearing an orange mask. Because I hadn't heard his voice yet, I couldn't put a name to him. He was some distance from the rest, who had grouped around in one area, watching out for each other.

As he neared the shadows I had chosen to hide in, I knew I had to act or be spotted. I stood slowly, stealthily, like a falcon circles before launching itself at a rabbit that had no idea it was there until it was too late.

Up here was my domain, and it was time this little invader learnt that lesson the hard way.

I left the shadows in a spinning kick, so hard I not only knocked the turtle off the rafter but went over myself. As he fell into a haystack, I flapped my wings, returning to the rafters and disappearing into the shadows again.

"Mickey, are you alright?" Raphael shouted down. So I had just unbalanced Michelangelo, had I? Well, one down and three to go.

"Watch out for her, guys," Michelangelo shouted back, struggling out of the hay. "She came out of nowhere, and she doesn't care about falling off the bar."

"We noticed," Leonardo called down. Then he turned his attention to the rafters again, trying to work out where I was. He was looking in completely the wrong direction though, as I crept up on them on the rafter over their heads.

"OK, guys," he said to the other two. "She's aiming to pick us off one by one, and come out of nowhere. So keep your eyes peeled."

I was already in position to strike again. Gripping the bar I was kneeling on, I swung around and down, straight into another. I knocked him clean off, and as he fell to join Michelangelo, I reached the highest point of the swing and released my grip, allowing my wings to catch me again and swoop around the barn.

I saw the turtle I had knocked off was wearing a purple mask and, since Raphael and Leonardo were the only two left, it was safe to conclude that Donatello had just taken the fall.

I rose into the air, allowing them to catch their first real glimpse of me. As I hovered there, beating my wings to remain airborne, I felt every eye in the barn on me. Then I swooped over Leonardo and Raphael, coming in to land on a rafter a few feet away.

I just stood there, creating an invitation to attack me while I was in the open.

If had got the measure of them right, it would Raphael who would take the bait.

And I was not wrong. Raphael moved at me, and I waited for him. When I judged him to be closer enough, I dropped to one knee and span on my hands. My legs connected with his, knocking him off balance and off the rafter.

As he fell onto a haystack, I realised I had lost track of Leonardo. I snapped my eyes around, searching for him. I could see nothing.

Then I felt someone collide with me from behind, not only knocking me off the rafter but also pinning my wings.

As we fell, I knew I was going to get the mouth of straw. Sure enough, when we landed, Leonardo had ensured a soft landing for himself.

When he released me, I felt around my wing that was so newly healed, checking nothing had happened to it. I could feel nothing, but to be on the sire side, I flapped it as I got to my feet.

"Are you alright?" asked Casey, coming over to me.

"I'm fine," I told him, tugging my wing in close again.

"You're really good," Leonardo said from behind me I turned to face him. "I didn't realise Casey could be such a good teacher, considering he's quite the hothead. I'm Leonardo," he said, holding out his hand. "My fellows are Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael."

I took the offered hand and shook it, glad of the proper introduction after so long. "I'm Takara," I said. "And I suppose you've already met Tzu?"

"He told us we'd find you here," Donatello said, coming over to join us. "In fact, when he told us Casey had been training you as ninjas, we had to see how good you were. I was expecting you to struggle, but I'm proud to have met you and had some sense knocked into me."

I was the centre of attention right then. As I spoke with these creatures, I felt included in a real team. Despite the apparent clashes of personalities in the group, they worked as a team, just as Tzu and I did. But I sensed it would be awkward to ask how they got as they were, so I avoided the question.

"Shall we go back to the house?" Casey said after a while. "There're still a few people you have to meet, Takara."

We walked back to the house as a group.

"Sorry about the flying knife act, by the way," I said to the whole group.

"I'm assuming it was you who slowed our journey down on the way up," Raphael said, and I nodded. "Well, as long as you don't have any more hidden away, I think we can forgive you."

"She didn't know we were friendly back then. No one was hurt in that anyway," Donatello said. "And the knife didn't hurt anyone. She was discarding her weapons just as we discarded ours."

Not another word was spoken until we entered the house again. Tzu was sitting by the fire, and his eyes turned to me the instant I appeared.

"So how did the training exercise go?" asked a voice I recognised from the yard. I found myself face to face with a giant rat, who was sitting in one of the chairs, eyeing us with a look of polite interest.

Giant turtles were one thing, but giant rats as well? That I was finding really hard to handle, but I was sure I could adjust.

Leonardo was speaking, and I focused on his words.

"It was a draw," he said.

"What, four against one ended as stalemate?" asked the other unknown person in the room. This voice belonged to a young woman with a head of red hair. "And didn't you say it would be a piece of cake, Mickey?"

"Yeah, that was rich talk," Raphael said, elbowing Michelangelo in the ribs. "Especially as you were the first out of the four of us to be knocked off the rafter."

"I didn't see her coming," Michelangelo said. "Anyway, you rushed in and got knocked off because you're such a hothead."

"A true ninja is ready for every attack, Michelangelo," the rat said from his place by the fire. "You must always be prepared, always be on guard."

"Yes, Master Splinter," Michelangelo said. The rat turned to Donatello.

"Now, Donatello, how did the exercise go?"

"We got into the rafters, and only moments later, Mickey knocked down. Then I followed due to another stealth attack. Then Takara changed her tactics, moving into the light. Raphael rushed her, and got knocked off because of haste. But she had lost track of Leo, and that gave him the chance to knock her off. But to ensure she couldn't simply fly back up, he grabbed her wings, which meant that he fell as well."

"You implied a good strategy, Leonardo. I am impressed. Sometimes victory is not as easy to gain without having to sacrifice something in return."

"But I didn't win, Master Splinter. It was a draw."

"You achieved what your brothers could not, and sometimes when victory isn't something you can easily gain, you don't lose either. Your battles with the Shredder should have taught you that at times things end in a stalemate. You just have to keep fighting."

"Takara did well though, didn't she?" asked a voice I recognised at once. I turned to see Adkins standing a few feet away. It still spooked me to see him, and I felt uneasy around him. He was looking at me with an immense pride I had never seen before in his face.

"Very well, considering she has only been training properly in the art for a few weeks," the rat said. His eyes were on Adkins, and I got the sense he didn't approve of what he had done to Tzu and me.


	8. Chapter 8

**i do NOT owm ninja turtles**

* * *

There was a rather awkward silence.

"Takara, this is Master Splinter," Casey said, indicating the rat. "And this is April O'Neill."

"We've all been looking for you for weeks, Takara," April said. "Tzu told us about your wing while you were in the barn. How is it?"

"On the mend now, thanks to Casey's help," I said. "It's still not a hundred percent better, but it's getting there."

"You seem to have accepted our presence here quite well," Master Splinter said, looking between me and Tzu. "Normally people ask a lot more questions. Do you not find our appearance startling?"

"A little," Tzu admitted. "But we're not human anymore, so there is no real trouble for us in seeing creatures that aren't human."

"You are a reasonable thinker, Tzu," Master Splinter said. "But my story also has a connection to the man you know as Saki. He is also known as the Shredder."

Both Tzu and I were paying full attention now that our foe had been mentioned. Master Splinter continued with his story.

"Once I was a normal pet rat, living in a cage beside my master. He was one of the most skilled ninja warriors of the day, and I learned through copying his movements. But there was one man full ambition and greed who challenged my master, who fought with nothing but honour.

The newcomer fought to win at all costs, and his name was Saki. At his whim, my master was disgraced and banished from the school where he had lived for so long.

"My master came here to New York, and made a living for himself training children to fight as he did. But the Shredder had enemies in this city and, after causing havoc in Japan, followed him here. He cornered my master, sent in waves of faithful Foot Warriors to wear my master down through dishonourable methods. During the fight, my cage was knocked over and broken.

"He accused my master of working with his enemies, but my master would not answer his questions. The Shredder ordered his henchman to kill my master when he saw he would not surrender any information. I tried to stop them by scratching the man, but to no avail. He threw me away.

"By the time I made it back to the room, my master was dead, killed by the Shredder.

"For a few years, I lived on the streets like any other common rat in a big city. Then I witnessed an accident. A boy carrying four infant pet turtles in a jar dropped it by accident into a gutter when a truck nearly ran into him. The jar smashed open, and a cylinder of a glowing green material with the letters TCRI printed on it bounced out, breaking as well.

"I found the four covered in the material. When I took them back to by lair, I found in the morning that they, and I, had doubled in size. I was more intelligent than I had ever been. They followed me everywhere underground, and soon they learnt to walk upright.

"Then they learned to speak, which was soon followed by intelligence. Knowing the world can be dangerous, and realising they would never be accepted for what they were, I began instructing them in the ways of the ninja, everything I had learnt from watching my master teach his students. I chose names for them from a book on Renaissance art."

As the story came to the end, I realised this was the connection to our enemy that Casey had left to its original narrator. And now I saw the enemy of our friends was the worst foe we would ever have to face. These new unusual allies had suffered more than we could have imagined at the hands of Saki, the Shredder.

We had been sold as slaves to this horrible man who took pleasure in killing.

If we hadn't escaped...I didn't even want to think about what we would have been forced to do under his control.

I glanced at Adkins, unsure about where he fitted in all this. I knew we could trust Casey, April, the four turtles and their rat master; but Adkins was the one who had abducted us, mutated us and come close to selling us to the Shredder.

Then something struck me: there was something different about Adkins. My eyes fell on his right hand. Instead of flesh, I saw grey metal. His hand had been replaced by a robotic one.

Aware of my eyes on him, he pulled up his sleeve, allowing me to see the whole arm. From the elbow to his hand was cold unforgiving metal.

"I paid the price for releasing you," he said. "The Shredder does not like any form of failure. When he came to collect you and found you gone, he took his fury out on me, punishing me for losing you. For a while, I stayed at his side, leading the search, ready to mislead them if I felt we were getting close to you.

"But I ran out of time. I have less than a week now to find you and hand you over. If I fail, I'm a dead man. Since I never had any intention of aiding the Shredder now, I decided to go to someone who would help me and would surely want to help two exceptional kids, and not look for control over you."

"Adkins came to us," Leonardo said. "He had this with him," he said, holding up a feather that I recognised as one of my own.

"I found it close to a place where the Purple Dragons had been holding their goods the day of your escape," Adkins explained. "It was the only proof I had found of your existence in all the weeks since you had fled. I didn't hand it over to the Shredder, even though it would have spared my neck from his wrath. I went straight to the sewers, which I knew was the domain of the Shredder's greatest enemies."

"The question now is what to do to now we have found you," Donatello said. "We could go back to the city, but I don't think you're trained well enough."

"Whatever we do, we cannot head straight for the Shredder," Master Splinter said. "And a decision cannot be made in haste."

"I think we should stay here, at least for a while," Casey said, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. ""Takara's wing is not quite back to normal, and a little bit more time will return it to its original strength. Here she is able to fly free and soar far; in the city, she would have to be careful about when she flew and where she went –the Foot Ninjas are probably all over the place."

"And here there is more than enough room for us all," April added. "If Takara and Tzu need more ninja training, it would probably be better to do it out in the open rather than below the streets."

"You have some good points," Master Splinter said, looking at me and Tzu. "But as this decision affects them the most, I think it's only far to allow them to make the choice."

Tzu looked at me. I really wanted to stay here, in the open, away from the fear and the city for now.

It was not just because I was afraid and preferred the country; if the Shredder was the ninja master that Master Splinter had described, we would need all the experience we could get before facing him.

And I saw a desire for the same thing in his eyes. As we had learnt long ago to communicate without words, what was seen in the eyes was very important. I nodded once, sealing my agreement with him.

"We'd like to stay here," Tzu said simply.

"I thought you might decide to do so," Master Splinter said. "You both need freedom and a life without worrying about the Shredder for a while more. Soon, if you agree to let me take over your training from Casey's hands, you'll be ready to face him as one of us. Takara, you still need to get your strength up."

As one, without even needing a private conversation, we nodded our acceptance of the offer to continue our training under Master Splinter.

But if we had thought that would mean the training would be easy, we were wrong. All we had learnt over the past few weeks had been the basics. That was not even half of what it meant to be a ninja. And Master Splinter was a harsh teacher, but effective. Under him, we were constantly challenged and tested to our brinks of our endurance.

We learnt the true meaning of stealth, and when we were given weapons, it was not long before we learnt the most crucial lesson –that a weapon was only as good as whoever wielded it.

I chose a pair of short curved daggers, like smaller versions of the katanas used by Leonardo. They were a rather deadly addition to the arsenal of a flying teenager, and I had learnt to combine them with some fancy flying moves to be impressive.

Tzu chose a bo staff like the one wielded by Donatello, and his extra strength, he would create a force to be reckoned with. Certainly he was stronger than Donatello when the two sparred, making up for his lack of experience.

Inside of two weeks, we had learnt about balance, the power of remaining in the shadows, fighting with weapons and without.

One lesson I held to was that as long as a warrior's mind and weapon were joined, they could never be defeated in honourable combat.

My wing continued to grow in strength, and I could fly further and further each day that passed. Finally I was able to fly out for several hours straight and back to the farm without even breaking a sweat.

As one sparring session ended, about three weeks after we had met our new allies, Master Splinter made me and Tzu stay behind.

"Takara, there is a fierce fire burning in you, an anger and a desire to find out who you once were. In a fight against the Shredder, those thoughts can distract portions of your mind, and that could be fatal. Calm the fire or it will destroy you.

"Tzu, you have a smaller fire, but it burns even brighter. Stick with Takara, and your combined fires will be a blaze. Nothing will stand before the withering heat when you stand united. Let anyone or anything come between you, and both your fires will be no more."

We bowed and left. We knew what he was trying to tell us, the one lesson Adkins had told us –together we were strong; if we were divided, we would fall together. We already knew we would do anything for one another.

But there was something else on my mind, something more private that Splinter had detected. I was fuelled by an anger that flared up at the thought of the Shredder and what he might be doing to find us. I was determined to find him before he found us, and make him pay for his crimes.

And there was a desire deep in me to find the truth about who I was before I was snatched from the light of day.

Tzu had chosen his given identity, and that was what everyone called him, but he did have another identity –Liam Marks. He could remember Casey, his home and his family.

I, on the other hand, had no other name to choose over Takara. I was just Takara, the winged bird-kid with no family that I could remember. My clear detailed memories only went back a couple of years, but there were other faces than those surrounding me now, and I couldn't put a name to them.

It was driving me mad. And to top it off, I was jealous of my best friend.

That night at the table I was very quiet. I hardly talked, didn't take much interest in the conversations all around me or the plans for the next day. Afterwards, I headed straight for the upstairs bedroom that I and Tzu now shared with all four turtles and sat on my bed. The adults preferred to sleep downstairs.

No one came up to disturb me, and by the time they came up, I had gone for a night-flight.

By the time I got back I was the only one awake.

My newfound distraction continued. My performance in the sparring sessions got poorer and poorer in a matter of days as my mind clouded. I knew it, but I refused to discuss it, even with Tzu.

"You must focus, Takara," Leo said after he disarmed me with absurd ease. "Your mind is distracted."

When he let me up, I just brushed myself off and walked out of the barn. I was getting restless. I wanted answers to who I really was. Nothing served to distract me from that question; not even the most rigorous training appealed to me anymore.

When I retired to the bedroom, I climbed onto the roof and looked out over the woods.

Normally I felt free up here, out of the house but close to my friends. But now I just felt lonely –I couldn't talk about how alone I felt.

I was surrounded by friends who were doing all in their power to help Tzu and me, and Tzu was so close to me we were almost brother and sister. But still I wanted to find my family more than anything, and alone I had no way to start the search.

I heard the sound of talking coming from the porch below me. I slipped down, landing on the roof sheltering the porch. I recognised the voices of Tzu and the four turtles. With a jolt of the stomach I realised they were talking about me.

"Is it just me, or has Takara been acting strange for the past few days?" Mickey was asking, speaking to the group at large.

"I've noticed it as well," Tzu said. "She isn't acting like herself. Ever since Splinter held us back, she's withdrawn into herself."

"What exactly did Splinter talk to you about?" Raphael asked.

"The thing we always knew –together we're strong enough to face down any foe," Tzu said. "Since we left the underground laboratory, we've done everything together. But it's like that talk went deeper than it was meant to for Takara."

"Was there anything else?" Leo pressed. "Did he mention anything that didn't really affect you, but meant everything to Takara?"

"No, not that I can think of offhand," Tzu said, but there was a sudden break in his voice as he realised what exactly had been said. "God, I've been stupid. Splinter mentioned that she had a fire in her fuelled by a desire to know who she was."

"I don't get it," Don said.

"Somehow the conversion that Takara went through to become one-fifth crane hawk has destroyed her long-term memories," Tzu said. "When she recovered, there were unfamiliar faces with no names or significance in her mind. She had instincts, though, that told her they were important to her. She can't even remember her original name."

"How could Adkins do that?" Don said, and I could hear shock in his voice.

"I don't think he meant to," Tzu said. "It didn't happen to me, so I think he had no way of knowing that everything Takara held most dear would be destroyed. But it definitely worked to his advantage."

"That must be it, then," Leo said. "Now we know the cause, I think we can help her pull through her confusion."

"We promised to help each other reunite with our families," Tzu said. "I want her to be happy, but I don't think my family will want to see me again. Look at me, I'm part cobra now. I'm covered in scales and have fangs; I'm cold-blooded; I even shed my skin. I look like a monster. At least she has a better chance of being accepted."

Tzu had never told me that fear before; I was so used to being around him that I didn't think twice about how he must look to the normal humans. But I remembered that I had jumped when I had first laid eyes on him.

In a way he was right; I was more likely to be accepted as I looked more human, but would my parents really want a winged daughter? Would it be better to stick together and not seek out who we were with the threat of refusal hanging over us?

No matter what happened, I knew Tzu would be there for me. And I intended to be there to return the favour. Besides, it was too early to worry about that. Before that, we had to deal with the man who kept us on the run.

It was then I realised I was thinking straight again. Hearing the conversation, and Tzu's fears, had jolted me back the present.

The time for deciding to find my family, and Tzu's, would come in due time. It had reminded me of what was important. If I was withdrawn, we would never be able to call ourselves free and never able to bring down the man we hated. We had to work as a team.

I decided to withdraw, and show I had recovered in the next morning's sparring session.

The next morning, the session that pitted us against each other went smoothly. I was back to my full potential, and all my energy was focused on the present. No longer did I silently bemoan the fact that I had no family; as far as I was concerned, my friends were my family right then.

"You seem to be yourself," Leo said as we left the barn.

"I know I've been acting weird for a few days now," I said. "I've been acting like a fool, actually. But you guys helped snap me out of it and get my head on straight."

"How exactly did we do that?" Mickey asked. "You haven't spoken to any of us for four days, and suddenly you change personality again."

"I heard you talking last night," I admitted. "You reminded me of what was important. Tzu and I will never be free if we don't take down the Shredder first, and we can't to that unless our flames are burning as one."

"You heard everything?" Tzu asked.

"Yes," I said. "And I want you to know something, Tzu. I'll be there for you, no matter what else happens. Until your family accepts you for who you are other than your looks, I won't be out searching for mine."

Tzu smiled, light-hearted again. "That's the Takara I know so well," he said, grasping my hand firmly, in our gesture of friendship. I gripped his just as tightly. "And together, we can take down any hurdle."

"I'm glad you feel that way," said a voice behind us. We turned to see Master Splinter behind us. "I have taught you all you need to know for the battle to come. It is time we returned to the city."


	9. Chapter 9

I DO NOT own Ninja Turtles

* * *

The city looked even more depressing than I remembered. There were thousands of grey buildings, each one nearly identical to the previous one, most of them being several hundred storeys high, all jostling for space on Long Island and a large extent of the mainland to the north. And there was the stink and noise of traffic everywhere, and the constantly blaring horns of hundreds of impatient drivers.

After the freedom of the countryside, coming back to New York was like voluntarily boxing ourselves into cages. Everything was close together, and stank. My senses must have been dulled in freedom, but here they were attacked by thousands of different scents as people eat while walking on the pavement.

I sat in the back of the four-wheel drive truck, known as the Battle Shell. It was equipped with computers and observation gear, as well as an impressive arsenal of defensive and offensive capabilities. There was more than enough room for all of us, and Casey brought along his trailer.

We chose to enter the city when it was dark and the volume of traffic far less than during the day, to avoid detection more than anything. We were headed for an isolated warehouse that housed a secret lift that went directly down into the underground lair of our new friends.

With the Battle Shell parked in the warehouse, we boarded the lift that was filled with curious glowing crystals the likes of which I had never heard of. It moved smoothly down to the sewer system. It felt strange to be back underground after escaping from such an environment all those weeks ago, but this time I knew we were with friends rather than trapped by a scientist against our will.

The lair was a circular room, with a raised platform around the outside wall, and a lower arena filled with fighting and training equipment. There was a wall of screens in one area, several couches and chairs around them. Above us ran another series of rooms.

"Welcome home," Leonardo said to Tzu and me. I flapped my wings and rose to the height of the rafters; tucking my wings in close to my sides, I bore down at the centre of the room in a nose dive. With only a few metres left, I twisted in midair so my feet would have touched the ground first if I hadn't beaten my wings again, rising to the air again in a quick recovery position.

Already Tzu was testing his manoeuvres in the enclosed space, back-flipping and twisting in the air in rather lethal combinations. Once we were content with the room we had in this room, we returned to earth, where our friends watched us in amusement.

"I take it that you like this place?" Mickey asked.

"It's brilliant," Tzu said before I could, and I nodded my agreement.

"We're glad about that," Donatello said. "Because it's your home as well as ours now, for as long as you need or want. If you decide to stay here and not look for your parents, you're welcome to stay. If you do decide to go back to your families, we'll always be your friends, and you will be free to visit if you're in the area."

"We can't think of any way to repay your kindness," Tzu said. "Casey stepped in to save us; you offer us friendship and a place to live without fear of discovery."

"You don't need to pay us back," Raphael said. "What are friends for except watching one another's backs?"

Over the past few weeks, Tzu and I had learnt what friendship meant in the world of the ninjas. We were part of that world now, and right now we needed all the friends we could get to take down the Shredder and truly be free to live our own lives.

Together Tzu and I were almost indestructible in spirit or health; with the added might of the turtles behind us, we truly were unstoppable.

The Shredder was getting more and more irritable by the day. Now Adkins had vanished, and seemed to have changed sides. There was only one punishment for such a crime, but that could not be afflicted on a missing man.

Now he had his Foot Soldiers, the cloaked Tech Ninjas and the most skilful Foot Elite Soldiers who served as his personal guard scouring every spot they had previously overturned again, and the Purple Dragons were also scouring the streets. Still there was no sign of the elusive twosome, or their creator. But they were somewhere in the city, and he would find them in the end, even if he had to disturb the peace. If they were allied to his enemies, he would punish them. No, he would harm and punish the girl. It was the boy he really wanted. If they were truly as loyal to one another as Adkins had once claimed, he was sure that the boy would rather do his bidding than see his weakling fellow creation harmed.

Tzu had slipped up to the surface at first light for a run before the streets got busy for the second time in two days. Since he had been back, he had hit the streets to familiarise himself with the city and all its alleys. Takara knew that he always did so, and that he would be back soon after the sun rose and the traffic increased.

As he swung himself onto a fire escape that led from the windows of the higher flats in a building to the roof, he savoured the fresh air. He began to run, leaping the gaps between the buildings, using the roofs as a private running track.

Unexpectedly he ran into something quite solid and recoiled, staring at empty air. He had not run into any walls, but something was here, blocking his path. He flicked out his tongue, tasting the air. Something warm-blooded was here, but hidden from plain view somehow. It had the shape of a man.

All of a sudden he remembered what Raphael had been telling them about the Shredder's army of ninjas; the human Foot Soldiers and the masterful Foot Elite, and the super-strong and fast Foot Techs with their enhanced stealth capabilities.

He had run into at least one Foot Tech, and it would only be a matter of time before the rest arrived. He got to his feet, pulling out his two kusarigama, readying for a fight. Suddenly two armoured men stood in front of him. For a moment they were stationary; the next second they attacked, leaping into the air to give their attacks increased strength. Tzu automatically flipped himself backwards, away from the first attack and into a defensive position ready for the next assault.

He wished he had the others here, or even Takara to fight at his side. But their fires were separate right now, and if he lost this fight, he was a prisoner of the man they had vowed to crush together. That spurred him on against the super-strength of the Foot Tech as they launched themselves against him again having recovered from the first attack almost too soon for him.

But it was two on one, and they were incredibly more skilful than he was. It wasn't long before he sank to his knees, panting, his spirit almost broken, and awaited the finishing blow.

But the Foot Tech retreated and bowed to someone behind Tzu. Turning to look, he saw a tall imposing man dressed in samurai-like armour and helmet. On his right hand was a three-bladed attachment. Although he had never seen him before, Tzu knew that this had to be the Shredder.

The Shredder was surrounded by about thirty others, dressed in simple black tops and trousers with masks over their faces. These had to be the Foot Soldiers, highly trained ninja assassins. Tzu could barely raise himself to the attack, but he had to. Picking up his dropped weapons, he launched himself at the Foot Soldiers.

It was a valiant effort, but it made little different. They piled on top of him and disarmed him with almost absurd ease, holding him down. He had lost the fight, and could sense captivity looming for him.

"I have you at last," the Shredder said, approaching the exhausted snake-boy. "You may have learned to fight like one of my enemies, but you are foolishly weak in comparison to them. And you were foolish to think that you could evade me forever."

"I'll never serve you," Tzu panted. The Shredder crouched in front of him.

"You won't have a choice; once your little friend flies straight into my trap, it'll be a simple choice between serving me willingly and watching her die as you resist."

I was pacing anxiously. I knew Tzu always slipped out to the surface for a morning run, but he was always in time for breakfast. Now midday was coming on, and there was no sign of him.

This wasn't like him, and all my senses were telling me one thing –he had been caught, someway or other, by the Shredder. I was sure of it

Leonardo was standing at the entrance, making sure I wouldn't make a break to go on my own to rescue Tzu. Raphael and Mickey were sparring, and Donatello was working on another mechanic contraption. Master Splinter was not present at the moment.

"We can't rush headlong into a rescue operation when we don't even know where he is," Leonardo was saying. My temper was quickly reaching the limits of its patience. If Leo didn't yield soon, I would be on top of him.

"The Shredder has hunted us for months, Leo," I said, panting with the strain of keeping calm. "If Tzu is in his grasp, he'll be held at the headquarters, the prize of the Shredder. Tzu's all I have, Leo. I'll go alone to get him if I really have to."

"It's still far too dangerous for you to go out alone," Leo said.

"To hell with that!" I snapped. I had little concern for danger now; I felt a herd of angry musk ox wouldn't keep me from Tzu for any longer. Pausing only to snatch up my naginata, I shoved Leo out of my way. I didn't heed their shouts as they vibrated after me as I almost flew down the tunnel leading to the surface.

Tzu was in trouble, I was sure of it. And I would do all in my power to get him out of whatever jam he was in. We were a team, bond to one another with strong bonds of loyalty.

I hovered around the building that housed the Foot Clan's Headquarters. I knew the layout quite well due to the blueprints the four turtles had managed to obtain for constant break-ins. The Shredder's main residence was a temple-like structure high up on the roof, seventy storeys in the air.

Judging by the fact that the Shredder was a megalomaniac as well as having a huge egomania problem, I expected to find Tzu in that structure. I had seen no sign of people in the building, and I had been spying on the building for so long that the sky was now growing dark. Tzu was in there somewhere –I could almost sense him.

With dusk masking me, with darkness hiding me from normal eyes as was the ninja way, I lifted into the air from a nearby roof. I climbed high into the air, high enough to clear the wall running around the edge of the rooftop garden. I landed behind a pillar, and from there peered around. So far I had obviously not been detected, but the silence was starting to gnaw at my nerves. It was almost too quiet; that sounded like a really bad movie line, even in my own head, but it was what I felt. I was isolated, without the support of my allies, about to attack a known fortress of a hated enemy, and I was doing it on my own. All that prevented me from abandoning my plan was the thought that Tzu might be in real danger. If he was harmed, I would dish out a little pain of my own. I would be an avenging angel.

Drawing my naginata, I headed for the door that led out into the garden. I prayed that it would be unlocked, and found it was. At the door, I hesitated –this seemed a little bit too easy; I hadn't run across a single obstacle yet, and Donatello had told me every floor had been filled with deadly trap after deadly trap. Perhaps I was expected. I could be walking right into a trap. If the Shredder knew about the loyalty between me and Tzu, perhaps he had lured me here to capture me and complete the set of captives he had.

But my loyalty to Tzu was stronger than my reason. I would have walked through fire to be with him if I had to, and I knew he would have done the same for me. Before my common sense could take over, I had thrown the door wide and crossed the threshold.

Across the room from me stood a low platform, with cushions on the floor behind a low wooden table. On it rested a three-clawed object, presumably belonging to the Shredder.

And chained by the hands to a ring set in the floor before the platform, almost motionless, was a figure I knew well.

I tucked my naginata away, and hurried to the side of Tzu, rolling him onto his back. He looked fairly bad, as though he had been in a fight and come out the worst. I saw his kusarigama resting on the table a few metres away. He was in a mess, and I was willing to guess he had had his fighting spirit crushed. I had to get him out of here, and as quickly as possible.

He opened his eyes. When he saw me, he grasped my wrist. I laid a reassuring hand over his clenched fist.

"You shouldn't be here, Takara," he whispered. "Get out, right now."

"I'm not going to leave you, Tzu," I replied, ignoring his order. "We're a team, remember? I'm going to get you out of here."

He shook his head. He was trying to communicate something to me. I knew we were in danger, but I wouldn't just leave him like this. I started to examine the locks to his chains. They looked easy enough to pick, and I reached into the bag I had brought with me for something to pick the lock with.

Tzu grasped my wrist again.

"You have to get out, Takara. It's a trap to get you. Have you forgotten the Shredder's attitude to you?"

"I will get out, Tzu, but you're coming with me," I said, pulling my arm free and turning back to the lock. "Remember what Splinter told us? We're strongest when we're together. We'll take down the Shredder as a team."

Tzu's eyes, which had been focused on my face, snapped to a space behind me. Fear filled his eyes. Whatever had scared my leader would taste my fury. No one who frightened Tzu would survive my attack.

Swinging my naginata, I pivoted, just in time to block the axe of a tall man dressed as a samurai of Japan. He was not the only one –behind him were three others, all equipped with a different weapon. All looked like professional, but so was I. I knocked the legs out from the one who had attacked me from behind, and leapt into the air, opening my wings wide. I had gained an advantage held by no other creature in creation, and I used it to my full power, combining all the passes I had been taught over several months. They might be ninjas, but so was I.

In any fight, numbers may not win a battle, but they did help. I was dealing with four highly skilled ninjas, presumably the Shredder's personal guard, the Foot Elite Soldiers. I had to keep my eyes open for every counter attack.

But the Foot Clan was not exactly known for fighting fair. As I returned to the air from another pass at my enemies, something leapt from the ceiling, catching me by surprise and forcing me to the ground. I lost my weapon as I hit the ground, winded. It spun away across the floor. Immediately the Foot Elite Soldiers leapt on me, like four cats on a bird. The numbers were too great now I was out of my natural environment, and I was soon held fast by all four in a grip I could not hope of escaping, despite my continued struggles. I was a prisoner, just as Tzu was.

The other door opened and a man I had no problem recognising entered the room. Saki, also and better known as the Shredder, walked to the table and slipped on the three-bladed attachment to a black glove. Then he turned to me.

"I was wondering when you would show up," he said. His voice was smooth and sophisticated. "Your little friend was sure you would not show up, but I guessed correctly that you would try to rescue him. Tell me, what is the point of loyalty if it makes you fly straight into a trap?"

I chose not to answer him, letting hatred shine out of my eyes. Saki must have picked up on my hate, and my underlining fear.

"So, what am I to do?" Shredder asked, almost to himself. "I have the two of you in my grip. And you'll never know freedom again.

"But that's not enough," Saki went on. "I have some punishment to dish out for leading me a merry dance, for making a fool out of me. So much money went into buying and then hunting you when you decided to slip off. You have cost me a fortune. So how are you going to pay me back?"

"We'll never serve you," I spat, still trying to fight off the Foot Elite Soldiers. But they were stronger than I was.

"That's almost exactly the same as what your friend said," Saki said. "And look where that got him: tied up like a chicken waiting to have its' neck wrung." He approached Tzu, who tried to retreat, but his chain wasn't long enough. The Shredder knelt in front of him, placing the blades along his shoulder. I thought I knew what he was going to do: slice into Tzu's delicate scales. It would be torture to him.

"No!" I shouted, struggling harder than ever before. "Leave him alone!"

Saki looked around at me, and I realised he had been looking to get that reaction out of me. I fought with all my might –all I cared about was protecting Tzu. He had already been the subject of abuse.

He nodded discreetly at one of the four holding me, and the next thing I knew was a sharp blow to my lower back. I sank to my knees, trying to suck in air. I felt cold iron being fastened around my wrists, and worse something being slipped over my wings, secured tightly. The Shredder was standing over me.

"You have a lot of spirit in you," he said coldly. "I think you should learn your place, and lose some of your will to fight against mine."

The next thing I knew was awful pain. It felt as though fire was coursing on my body. But I knew what was happening even as I fought the urge to scream, even as I fell to the floor, twitching and flailing in my pain. The contraption around my upper body was rigged to send electricity into my body at the touch of a button. It was a cruel contraption. Not even Adkins had thought to create such a way of punishment. Even the stun guns had not packed such a punch.

I was aware that someone was shouting, screaming at Saki's cruelty. It was Tzu.

"No! Leave her alone!"

The pain stopped, and I lay panting on the floor at Saki's feet. Tzu was on his feet, anger and horror in his face.

"Would you do anything to stop me from hurting her again?" Saki asked Tzu. He hesitated, looking at me. We looked into one another's eyes, and I understood what was going on his mind. I had been there for him so often, and I knew he wanted to return the favour. He wanted me to live, and not to endure anymore pain. He was willing to give up his own remaining resistance to protect me.

He nodded once.

"So do you pledge your loyalty to me?" Saki asked, and was rewarded with another, but smaller nod. Tzu had been so proud, so fiercely independent for so long, but now he was losing it to the tyrant that Saki was. "Then bow before me and call me master," he commanded. Tzu did as he was told without protest.

One of the Foot Elite Soldiers handed Tzu his weapon, and he put it in its holster.

"And now my first command to you," Saki said. "From the way you and your winged friend fight, it is clear that you were taught by my greatest enemies. You know where they lurk. Kill them once and for all, and bring me their weapons as proof of your victory. Fail in this, and your friend will suffer for it."

So that was why we had been caught. I was the worst off, under the threat of death, to force Tzu to do Saki's dirty work and attack even our own friends to protect me from further harm.

"Don't do it, Tzu," I pleaded. "You can't do it."

Another burst of pain shot through me as Saki activated the punishing circuit in the contraption. It was brief, but Saki had silenced my pleas to Tzu.

"I'll do it," Tzu said. I looked at him, unable to belief he had yielded to Saki's dark will. Then again, I had known I might well be captured if I came to Tzu's rescue, but that hadn't stopped me. He was doing what he could to be there for me; but I surely wasn't worth the lives of our friends to him?

Tzu left the place, grim-faced. I decided on one thing there and then: if he did carry out the dark action, I would never again be friendly to him.


	10. Chapter 10

I DO NOT own Ninja Turtles

* * *

Tzu was panting hard as he made his way to the street level. Takara was worth so much to him, and unfortunately the Shredder knew that. As long as he did the bidding of that tyrant, Takara would be safe from harm.

But it was taking all his strength to just walk to the lair. How had he come to this, ready to murder his friends in cold blood? Saki was cruel, and he had Tzu under his thumb. Tzu would never be whole without Takara, so she would be safe as long as he answered to Saki. But if he tried to rebel, he would lose a half of himself. If he couldn't do the bidding Saki forced him to do, Takara would pay heavily. But if he did, he would lose Takara's love and loyalty. What was the right thing to do?

He approached the lair with his weapons in his hands. He wished he didn't have to do this.

Leonardo was standing at the entrance. He saluted to Tzu when he saw his figure emerge from the shadows.

"How did you escape, Tzu? Where's Takara?" he asked. Tzu swung one of his weapons at Leonardo, who looked surprised and then shocked as Tzu knocked him to the floor and leapt on top of him, raising the iron weight to strike.

"What are you doing, Tzu?" Leonardo said, as Tzu struck at his head. Gripping the descending weapon, the two wrestled until the others arrived at the spot to drag Tzu from Leo and disarm him. Held by Raphael and Donatello, his weapon held by Michelangelo, Tzu went limp.

"What's gotten into you?" Raphael asked, surprised by Tzu's attack on Leo. "Have you lost your mind? We're your friends, and you attack us as though we're enemies."

"Let him explain himself, Raphael," Leonardo said as he picked himself up.

But Tzu was too filled with remorse to speak. What had he turned into in the brief service of Saki? Why had he not thought of the obvious –hatch a plan to rescue Takara with his remaining friends? What sort of monster had been released in his heart?

"What's up with you, Tzu?" Leonardo asked. "You meant me serious harm, if not worse. Why did you act like one of the Shredder's thugs?"

Tzu bowed his head, desperate to hide his face as tears began to course down his cheeks. At last, he summoned the strength to tell his allies what had happened.

"Takara came to my rescue," he said. "She was caught in the process, and is now a prisoner to Saki, a tool he used to bend me to his will."

"What are you talking about?" Raphael said as he released Tzu now that he seemed to be in control of himself. "What's the Shredder done to Takara?"

"He put a contraption around her. At the touch of a button, she receives a dose of electricity. He's threatened to use it if I try to resist him. He sent me here, to kill you. I am so sorry for my actions, Leonardo. But if Saki finds out I didn't do it, I will have failed to protect Takara, and he will punish her in my place."

"That Saki is a barbarian!" Raphael snarled. "I say we go topside and teach the Shredder a lesson he won't forget in a hurry!"

"As long as I do not return, he will think that I have abandoned Takara. If I return empty-handed, Takara will suffer. But she will think the worst of me if I do hand him what he ordered me."

"What proof does he want of our defeat?" Donatello asked.

"Your weapons," Tzu said quietly.

"Then you shall have our weapons," Michelangelo said, stretching out his weapons of choice towards Tzu; the gesture was copied by all of the others. Tzu looked around at them in amazement: only a moment ago he had attacked them, and here they were surrendering their weapons to him as though it had never happened.

"We'll help you rescue Takara," Raphael promised. "She's our friend as well as yours, Tzu. And if the Shredder attacks one of us, he attacks us all."

"Now, let's get planning," Donatello said.

I sat in silence on the floor, waiting with my worst enemy for the arrival of my best friend. There was no point in trying to test the chains –I would just get a dose of electricity for my trouble. For hours we waited.

"I wonder if your friend had finished his task by now," Saki said tauntingly.

"Friendship is not a word you would understand," I said softly, knowing very well that I would get a painful jolt of electricity for insubordination, but I was past caring. "He would never harm the others, not even to save me."

"Are you sure about that?" the Shredder asked, his eyes moving from my face to the direction of the doors. With a sinking feeling in my heart, I turned slowly. There in the doorway stood Tzu. His hands were grasping the weapons that I knew at once to be the weapons of Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo. My heart plummeted. Had he really performed an act of cold blood, and against our friends?

The Shredder was enjoying the shock in my face as Tzu made his way forward, seeming to prove me wrong with every step. Anger bloomed in my heart as the impassive monster that Tzu had become made his way forward and bowed before Saki, holding his trophies out before him.

It was too much. From that moment on, Tzu was no longer my friend, but the servant of the man who we had once sworn to beat together. He had completely betrayed my trust in him by committing this foul act, and I would treat him with nothing but the loathing I held for Saki himself.

As Tzu stood, I lost what little self-restraint I had left, and sprung from my place and attacked my erstwhile friend. I heard Saki's laughter, and knew he wasn't punishing me because he was enjoying the prospect of a fight. Tzu was unbound, and had the advantage of being stronger than I was. He wrestled me to the ground and held me down. I knew he was trying to tell me something through his eyes, and our invisible connection, but I didn't want to see anything from Tzu, and raised my arms, striking him around the head. He fell dazed to one side, and I took advantage to climb on his chest and club him with both arms. I was lent power by my fury. He had been the other side of our team, but his betrayal went deep, and now all I wished was to be rid of the monster below me.

A sharp pain jolted through my body caused me to cry out in pain and fall from my perch on his chest. The pain of the electric shock caused me to gasp for air when it was past. Tzu got to his feet and stepped away from me, apparently uncaring for my pain. He turned to Saki, and bowed before him.

"My Lord, for years I have wondered why I was created. Now I know the purpose of my life; I was designed to serve you. I am your servant. Instruct me as you will."

Pain coursed through my heart at this spoken betrayal, worse than any dose of pain that the contraption could ever have administered. Where was the Tzu I remembered and had always respected? Before he had left, he had sought only to protect me, and now he acted as though I was beneath his notice. Saki leered at me as I struggled to keep from crying.

"Your fellow creation has come to his sense, Takara," he said. "Why resist me any longer when you have no friends on that side of the line? You have so much potential. It is a shame to keep you tied up and restricted. Why not soar free as my loyal servant?"

"I'll join you when hell freezes over," I snapped angrily.

"Very well," Saki said. "Stay tied to that ring and only dream of freedom. It is your choice, and you have made a poor one."

On a rooftop only a block away from the Foot Clan Headquarters, the four turtles were moving ever nearer, readying for the attack against the Shredder to free Takara. With them was a rather anxious Adkins. Once he had heard the discussion, he had asked to take part and protect Takara. He was not much of a fighter, but he still carried the necessary knowledge to enter into the rooftop home of the leader of the Foot Clan without any detection.

Night had fallen when they made the jump to the rooftop garden. Adkins was nowhere near as agile as the four turtles were, having never trained in the arts of the ninja. Even when he had been younger, he had been unfit, preferring to be inside with his computers. So, as they scaled the outside of the building, he clung on around Leonardo's neck.

They knew Tzu would be acting as the apparently loyal servant of the Shredder now, but he was in on the plan. To free Takara, he would have to have access to the keys to free her chains and the cruel contraption Tzu had described. Slowly they crept into the temple-like building, watching for any hostiles.

Takara was there, sleeping on the floor, curled under her wing as normal. And Tzu slipped into the room from the far side of the building, saluting as he saw the five. He tossed the turtles back their weapons.

"I wasn't expecting you," he said in a whisper to Adkins.

"We can discuss this later," Adkins said. "Anyway, I'd do anything to help you two. I've told you two that before. I feel responsible for all that I did to you, and now for your safety."

"There'll be plenty of time to do the catch-up thing once we're all out of here," Donatello said, who had been making his way towards Takara even as Adkins and Tzu had been talking.

I felt someone shaking me awake. All afternoon I had been refusing to even look at Tzu, and only when he had retreated to the better rooms for the night had I allowed myself to cry over Tzu. I had been his friend for years, but this was a side to him I could never have imagined actually existed.

When I uncurled from my position on the floor, it was to see Donatello leaning over me. That was the last thing I had expected, and I stared in amazement.

"You didn't think I'd really abandoned you for that madman, did you?" Tzu asked as he came to crouch next to me. He was holding a key and put it into the lock of one of the two clamps around my wrists. I realised how foolish I had been –he had never left me, but had been playing a part to gain the trust of the Shredder. And I could see that all four of the turtles were now armed with their weapons again.

Between Tzu and Donatello, I was soon freed from the wrist manacles and almost cut out of the cruel contraption. Tzu passed me my blade on a pole, and I slung it over my back, feeling like a complete fool.

"I'm sorry," I apologised. Tzu pulled me into his arms, and held me tight.

"We're a team, and nothing can separate us. You know that."

Just then a shocking pain coursed through the contraption that wasn't quite off, hitting me hard. And I wasn't the only one to sink to the floor in pain; Donatello had been working on removing it, and Tzu had been holding me to him. Then the pain died away.

"I am not surprised by your treachery, Tzu," said a cold voice I had no problem recognising. Saki had been hiding here the whole time. He stepped out of the shadows, dressed in a suit of black armour, the three-clawed instrument attached to his right hand. "And I am glad you are all here. Now I can get rid of all my enemies in one swoop."

He raised the remote high. I braced myself, ready for the pain that would come. But someone had leapt at the Shredder, knocking the remote from his hand and taking him by surprise. It was Adkins, the man who had shown remorse and set us free, who had helped to protect us from being found.

"You are nothing more than a coward!" Adkins shouted.

"So you decided to turn up again, as an enemy," the Shredder said coldly. "Now I can punish you for all your failings."

He punched Adkins so hard I could hear a rib crack, and then threw Adkins from him, so hard he crashed through the glass window and fell over the edge of the building.


	11. Chapter 11

I DO Not own Ninja Turtles

* * *

It was a deadly seventy-storey fall. There was no way any human could have any hope of surviving that fall. Anger filled me up, restoring my sense of pride and honour, refuelling my drive to fight and lending me strength that had been lacking in my brief but horrible imprisonment.

That strength enabled me to break the contraption still around my wings, shattering the Shredder's control over me. I didn't even have to think about my options –I swooped out of the shattered window after Adkins. I could not explain my loyalty to the man who had taken me captive so many years ago, but he had attacked the Shredder to stop him using the remote that would have meant another painful electric shock. Adkins was the less evil of two masters, and the one who had released me in the first place.

I pulled my wings tight to my sides, streamlining my body to go as fast as possible. I quickly gained on Adkins as he fell through the air. I caught his wrist and pulled one arm over my shoulder. As soon as I had caught him around the waist, I concentrated on finding a way back to the rooftop garden. But there was not enough of an air current to allow me to reach the top from where I was. I settled with landing on another rooftop, some distance away, but still close to hear the sound of battle that was now rising.

Adkins was in bad shape. His breathing was shallow and blood coated his side. There was no denying it: he was close to death. But at least he wouldn't die alone. I took his hand in mine, resting his head on my lap.

He opened his eyes and saw me above him. For what could be the last time, he smiled at me, and I saw warmth and care blazing in his eyes. He did care for me and Tzu, more than anything else.

"I truly never created you, Takara," he said in a whisper. I could tell that it was costing him a lot, but he wanted to say something. I would let him do so. "True, I gave you wings, but I could never have dominated you. You're too used to freedom to fall into a cage now. Now, go and burn the Shredder with your team mate. Be free again, Arianna Jenkins."

Those two words told me one thing –that was my true name, the one that had been deleted from my mind. I was truly called Arianna. Those two words were the key to unlocking my past.

When I could focus on Adkins again, I saw his eyes were blank and staring. He had died in my arms. Tears welled up in my eyes, and fell like crystals onto Adkins' face.

Then anger replaced my grief. Adkins had died at the Shredder's whim, and he would die at mine. Adkins had stolen my life, but the Shredder had been willing to destroy me. Now Adkins had given me the chance to start my life over again. But to find my family, I had to destroy my enemy once and for all.

I had had enough of the Shredder's cruelty. He would pay for what he had done. I would be Adkins' avenging angel.

I opened my wings and, leaving Adkins' body in safety on the rooftop, soared back towards the building where I had left my fellow and friends. We were all that was left. And the only other one who would die was the Shredder.

As I cleared the wall again, I saw the fight had spread into the garden. The four turtles were battling in the middle of a ring of ordinary –and by that I mean human –Foot Soldiers, fighting back to back. Tzu was isolated, at the feet of the Shredder, who was ready to kill him. Tzu was the closest thing I had to family right now, and there was no way I would let the Shredder harm him.

It was simple; we were a team, and we would fight together with no obvious communication, until the death if we had to.

I dived straight at the Shredder, spinning and tucking my wings to my side so that my feet collided with his helmet hard, making him stagger as I recovered. I had come out of nowhere. Tzu rolled to his feet and sprang at the Shredder. His fangs sprang from his mouth as he opened wide and sank his long fangs, dripping with poison, into a gap between armour and helmet. The Shredder was poisoned, and I would deliver the final blow to the already dying monster.

I swooped down on him, and grabbed him by the arms, lifting him into the air as I took him over the wall. He would see the city nights for the last time before falling to his doom. Even in his poisoned state, he was able to work out what I was going to do.

"No! Don't do this!" he pleaded, but I ignored the cries of my greatest enemy. Once he was gone, there would be no one who could threaten my family while I searched for them.

I released my grasp and the Shredder fell through the air, screaming like a banshee as he hurtled towards the ground. I landed on the wall of the roof, not really watching the fall but waiting for the inevitable crash to reach me. He had only minutes left anyway as the poison of Tzu coursed through his veins. One way or another, he would die in the time it took him to fall seventy storeys.

The sound of battle had faded. I looked around to see that the Foot Soldiers had retreated now that their master had fallen. We were alone, and the battle for our freedom was over. Tzu clambered onto the wall to stand with me, and looked down.

With my incredible hawk-like sight, I saw the Shredder collide with a parked car with so momentum that he not only squashed the metal work but disabled the alarm. As people, mere ants on the ground from where we stood, gathered around, we stepped away from the wall.

"It's over," Tzu said. He was finding it as hard to accept our freedom that we had just won as I did. We had defeated our worst enemy, and were free to go home, to find our families again. It seemed almost too easy, too straight-forward. But the day was won, and the Shredder was definitely dead by now.

"We did it as a team," I said. Tzu put an arm around my shoulder as I tucked my wings in tight to my sides and back and laid my head on his shoulder.

"But we did suffer a loss," Leonardo said, coming over to join us. "Where did you leave Adkins, Takara?"

That was when I remembered; I had left Adkins on a rooftop, out in the open for people to discover if they ventured up there. I remembered his final words had been to tell me my true identity. Tzu saw it in my face.

"So what's your name?" he asked.

"Arianna Jenkins," I replied. "Those were the last two words he uttered."

"Come on," Tzu said. "Let's get the body before someone else gets to it first."

We would have plenty of time to discuss how to find our families later.

We burnt the body in the quiet outskirts of the city. Tzu slipped below the ground, and visited our original prison to get a neat ceramic pot to put the ashes in.

I had no words to say at his graveside. He had been the man I had hated for two years because he had abducted me, and I had been so wary of him for ages after. But he was also the man who had freed us, told us to run from Saki, turned against the man who had employed him and died in the process of protecting us. All I had been able to do was throw a bunch of poppies I had picked from the ground only a few feet away from the makeshift pyre. Tzu had managed to sum up all what I felt when it had been his turn to speak anyway.

We had no idea what he would have wanted us to do with his ashes, so we took the pot filled with his ashes back to the lair until we could work out what to do with them. They sat in the bedroom that Tzu and I shared. As I struggled to think of him as Liam Marks, he found it an effort to call me Arianna. Somehow we had grown so used to being called Tzu and Takara that it was hard to think of ourselves as anyone else.

At the same time, I was researching the name Arianna Jenkins, looking through news articles. There were any number of girls with the name Arianna, but I knew where to look. I hacked into the police computers, not afraid of being detected due to constantly changing codes that hid the identity of the laptop I had taken from the underground lab where we had been held prisoner.

And then I had it: Arianna Jenkins had been missing for over two years, presumed dead. I printed out the pages I needed. There was a photograph and, take away a few bruises from recent fights, it was me.

From that, I found articles relating to me, calling me the eldest of three children, a sporting champion, with a scholarship to come and study at an American sports college. I found that I had a sister called Lucy, who was a really brainy kid and was two years younger than I was; I also had a brother called Frank, the music prodigy of the family, between me and Lucy.

And then there were my parents –a lawyer and a president of a major string of computing plants. They had loved me deeply, the articles said; they wouldn't stop searching the city where I had disappeared until they found me; no matter what the odds were, they were sure I was alive. It sounded like one big happy family. I could vaguely remember their faces among others, but now at least some had some significance to me. At last I was regaining the memories I had lost.

But I couldn't look for them straight away. First I had a promise to keep. I had sworn to stand by Tzu until his family accepted him for who he was. He had been missing for four years, but he had more to worry about. He was partly a poisonous snake now, although he was still more human.

We got the help of Casey, who contacted the Marks family, saying he had found their son safe and sound. Now we had an appointment to meet the family.

Tzu was extremely stressed out on the day of the appointment at the manor house he remembered. He had covered his skin with a long coat with gloves to hide his upper body. Underneath, he wore trousers, a polo neck and a baggy top to hide his scales. His hair, which was green in colour, was hidden under a cap. But he couldn't hide his face so well, so he compromised with shades to hide his eyes.

His problem was that he didn't look human anymore. He was a snake-boy, with many snake qualities.

As we approached the house, Tzu began to doubt the wisdom of coming here. As he stared at the house where he had been lived four years ago, he started to tremble.

"I don't think I can go through this," he confessed. "They're not expecting a freak. And that's what I am."

"If they call you a freak, then so am I," I said. We had both been altered genetically, but I looked a whole lot more human. But we were both in the same boat. An insult to one of us was a shared insult. We would be friends forever, no matter what else happened, and we had such good friends in this city.

I opened the gate, holding Tzu's hand to prevent him from turning tail. It was another instance of when we reversed roles as follower and leader to support each other. We approached the door and I rang the doorbell. For a few moments, we waited. And then the door was opened.

A woman, probably in her early thirties, with tightly curled hair and dressed in a sober black suit, stood before us. She looked very professional, and her eyes were a bright green, almost like Tzu's.

"How can I help you?" she asked.

"Casey Jones phoned to tell you that your son was alive," I said, feeling awkward as I gestured at my friend. The woman's eyes fixed on Tzu –sorry, Liam.

"You'd better come in," she said. She led us into the lounge and gestured to a two-seater couch. "I'll go get Francis and the twins. Would you like anything to drink?"

"I'll have a soda, and so will Liam," I said, covering for Tzu's continued silence. When we were on our own, I looked at Liam. "There are twins?"

Tzu nodded. "China and Flora would be about thirteen years old by now. I've missed so much of their lives."

I put my arm on his shoulder. A few moments later, two girls stepped into the room and cautiously sat opposite us, staring at the boy who was their lost big brother. They were identical to one another, and I mean completely. The only way to tell them apart was the fact that they had very obligingly decided to wear different styles of clothing –one wore a skirt and the other trousers and a baggy top.

After them, a man stepped into the room. He was tall and very fine, dressed in the clothes of a gentleman. His hair was beginning to turn grey. His wife returned a few minutes later with two glasses of soda, which she handed to me and Tzu.

"So, who are you?" Mrs Marks asked me. "Are you Liam's girlfriend?"

"Not exactly," I said. It was going to be difficult to summarize our bond properly. "I'm known as Takara, just as I know Liam as Tzu, a name stemming from the Japanese word for a snake. My name stems from that of a falcon.

"I met Liam over two years ago, when I was abducted and taken to the same place where he was held prisoner. We escaped, and were on the run until about two weeks ago.

"There's something you should know about us. We're not entirely human anymore. We were genetically altered. I'm one-fifth crane hawk, and Liam's one-third black cobra. As such, we have certain...abilities."

I nodded at Tzu, who slowly took off his coat, gloves, sunglasses and hat. The family stared at the features I was used to. Even my warning had not been enough to lessen their shock. Tzu sat motionless, not looking at any of them. The two of us waited in silences for the storm of reaction that was sure to arrive soon, in one form or another.

The girls were captivated by his appearance; Mrs Marks had her hand over her mouth; Mr Marks just stared.

Mr Marks broke the silence; standing up, he walked to the mantelpiece over the fire and took down a photo. He looked carefully at the photo, and then at Tzu. Somehow I got the feeling he was comparing the Liam in the photo with the present Tzu. We waited in silence for his verdict.

"He does like a bit like our son," Mr Marks said eventually.

"There's one way to know for sure," his wife said, fixing us with an unflinching gaze. "Liam, our son, had a birthmark on his right arm, just on the edge of his shoulder."

I had seen a red birthmark on Tzu's arm a thousand times in the course of our time together. Tzu rolled his T-shirt up, and showed the adults the birthmark, shaped like a moon.

The two adults folded their newly recovered son into a tight embrace. China and Flora followed their parents to throw their arms around their brother's neck. I stepped away, out into the open, and up into the air. Tears coursed down my cheeks; the reunion had gone far better than I had ever hoped. Now Tzu was Liam Marks again, and I would have to search alone for my family.

The manor was on the outskirts of the Staten Island borough. I had to turn to the north to fly out over the river, over Brooklyn and towards the central Manhattan. I settled on the rooftop of an abandoned warehouse on the banks of the Hudson River. It was a tidal river, and the tide was way out. Folding my wings tight to my side, I stared around the city.

Now that the Shredder was dead, I was free to fly without fear of being caught by the Shredder or his cronies. Now Tzu and I were free to rebuild our lives, but I was afraid that we would never be as close as we had been. There was a gap in my heart now Tzu was accepted back into his family. His fears of rejection had not been realised, but my fears of being separated from my best friend had just begun.

I stayed out until it was late and dark. I was still cautious about being seen by the people of the city –a flying girl was an incredibly easy description to remember, and the last thing I wanted to do was draw too much attention to my presence. The Purple Dragons were still very much the power of the streets, and I had a feeling they'd be searching for those on the rooftop for a long time. And I had a feeling that it would be safest to lurk underground until the gang war that would presumably begin between the remaining mobsters now there was a vacuum of power was over.

When I tucked my wings in at a manhole cover, it was getting on for about six o'clock. As I descended into the tunnels, I knew Tzu was probably settled down to a decent, if not large meal, or else watching some television with his family. Well, I knew life always had to move on –there was no point looking back at what had already passed.

The four turtles were still involved in rigorous training with Master Splinter. I watched the exercise of balance on bamboo shoots for a while.

"So, how'd it go?" Mickey asked when he saw me, and was rewarded with a sharp blow from Splinter that knocked him off.

"This was an exercise of stealth and silence, Michelangelo," he said. A few moments later the lights flickered back on as he called an end to the lesson. "That concludes training for today."

Mickey picked himself up as Master Splinter headed into his apartment to mediate. The others gathered around me.

"Tzu's back with his family," I said. Raphael punched me lightly on the shoulder.

"Come on, let's spar. I'm so going to get you back."

I sighed. I didn't feel that much like fighting, but I didn't think I'd be able to distract myself any other way. I pulled out my naginata and joined Raphael on the floor. It was true that I had been able to disarm him without too much difficulty for the past few sparring sessions.

Raphael had always been the most aggressive of the four turtles, a hothead just as Casey was. He was always confidant he could win a fight, even a sparring session, all the time. And that pride was something I had dented when I had nailed him to the floor for the past few weeks.

As we settled down to eat, a proximity alarm flashed red on Donatello's console. Someone was nearing the lair. This wasn't armed with a tracker, like the one Tzu and I had run into so long ago.

We got into position to repel an attack, dimming the lights. I hid in the rafters, holding my naginata ready. Someone emerged from the tunnel into the darkness of the huge circular lair. I could only just make out the dark figure.

I swooped from the rafters, naginata held in front of me and ready to cut at my opponent, coming in quietly and quickly. There was no way anyone could see me coming.

But whoever the intruder was did see me coming. He grabbed my extended arms and used my own momentum to drive me to the floor. With the intruder perched on my chest, pinning my arms to the ground, I was helpless to defend my life.

"Now that's not very friendly, is it?" the person sitting on my chest asked, and I was stunned; I knew that voice only too well.

Someone put on the lights, and I saw Tzu was the one sitting on my chest. I was amazed and delighted.

"What happened?" I asked as he released me and held out a hand to help me up. "What went wrong?"

"Nothing went wrong," Tzu said brightly. "They were delighted to have me back, but they don't mind me living out in a secret location as long as I visit every now and then. So, do you want to focus on finding the Jenkins family now?"


	12. Chapter 12

Discontinued because I've written myself into a back alley with this story. But I'm working on it.


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